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the various social services and protection of labour, have been added new
thinking on education, and on relief and services for the underprivileged
handicapped and elderly; measures to meet the changing needs of the
New Territories; and a determined effort to provide for the enjoyment
of leisure. In addition there is a massive programme of public works
and communications. Of course all this is under-pinned by and is
dependent on our economic performance and the prudent management of
our finances.
130.
**
I have said that prospects for 1978 are difficult to forecast
at this juncture. On the one hand there are obvious dangers which
cannot be quantified at present, on the other respectable growth in
industrialised economies and in world trade can be expected, and may
well be stimulated by new measures, and Hong Kong is well placed to
take advantage of whatever growth there is. The respective weightings
of these conflicting factors will be much clearer by the time the budget
comes to be drafted, and you may trust your Government to act prudently
in the light of events as they unfold. But to be able to act at all
we must have carefully prepared plans for all fields of major endeavour,
not just for next year, but for as long as is necessary to ensure that
acceptable standards are provided for all our population. Our aim is a
radical improvement in conditions of life and opportunity for all, based
on an expanding economy. Now that our plans are maturing their impact
will be cumulative over the next 5 or 6 years.
Naturally we must be
ready to act with flexibility if necessary, but also with the deter-
mination that the aspirations of our people and the backlog left by
excessive immigration demand. Difficulties and uncertainties Hong Kong
is bound to have, but as each one confronts us nothing could be more
dangerous than the belief that safety lies in immobility on either the
industrial or social fronts. It would be a total misconception.
The
/labourers
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