TNAG-0607-FCO40-755-Monitoring-progress-made-on-planning-papers-on-Hong-Kong-1977 — Page 226

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CONFIDENTIAL

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du. Danil M. Duliy

Pi. 9. 2015

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STANDING COMMITTEE TO MONITOR THE PLANNING PAPER: WORK ARISING FROM THE THIRD MEETING

1.

You will wish to look at Mr David's minute of 20 May in conjunction with the draft record of the Standing Committee's meeting last week. I have the following observations on and suggestions to make as regards the items of work listed in Mr David's minute (references are to his sub-paragraphs): -

(a) I think that we in HKGD should prepare the initial draft of a letter to the Governor about the need for a link between the Governor's statement at the opening of Legco and the Financial Secretary's budget statement. I think it was also agreed by the Standing Committee that such a letter should make the point that the budget statement itself should be made the occasion for promoting social policies. Mr Duffy has undertaken 1 to prepare a first draft of a letter to the Governor;

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(b) I think that Mr Smith has already accepted that he should prepare the first draft of the letter that you are to write to the Financial Secretary but I will confirm this with him;

(c) it was, I think, agreed by the Standing Committee that the letter to be sent to the Governor should say that our preliminary reaction to the report of the Third Inland Revenue Review Committee was one of disappointment, eg the absence of any proposal for a dividend withholding tax, and that we are

Mr Duffy proposing to seek an informed opinion on the report. has agreed to prepare a draft on these lines;

(a) I think that we will have to leave it to the Economists Department to set about obtaining a professional opinion on the Review Committee's report. Despite the Standing Committee's doubts about the time that it would probably take the Board of Inland Revenue to comment, I am not sure, subject to Mr Smith's advice, that there is any other authority to which we could turn for advice on the Committee's report. If we do approach the Inland Revenue, I suppose it is possible that they might seek the help of the now retired Commissioner of Inland Revenue, (?) Mr Johnston, who chaired the Review Committee itself. It seems to me that it would be difficult for anyone in the Inland Revenue or elsewhere to comment on the report without a fairly full knowledge of the Hong Kong fiscal scene. If you wish, I will pursue with Mr Smith;

(e) Mr Duffy tells me that he has started work on a draft submission to Ministers (the Secretary of State as well as Lord Goronwy-Roberts) on child labour;

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implementation of the education programme;

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g) Mr David will likewise prepare a draft letter for you to send to the Governor about the contribution that the Unofficial Members appointed to Legco last autumn are making in carrying out

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