12,
RECEIVED IN
RE
14 FEB.//7
From the Minister of State
The Rt Hon The Lord Goronwy-Roberts
Dear Jack,
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
London SW1A 2AH
10 February 1977
Mu. Staway Lees
du Dual P/A
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Bucher "model" un two event of punteer
hollert on this @nject.
Dim
As you know, your letter of 19 January to Edmund Dell enclosing one from Mrs J Owen of 15 Bushy Grove, Kingswood, Haidstone, Kent, about conditions of child labour in liong Kong 14/2. was passed to us for reply.
You may have noticed that Boh Parry put down a number of questions on this subject just before the Christmas Rocess. I enclose copies of the extracts from lansard which Mrs Owen may like to see. I should draw particular attention to the fact that the employment of children under the age of 14 in industrial establishments in Hong Kong is illegal and that labour inspectors make regular visits to factories to ensure that the law is enforced.
There has been steady progress in recent years in long Kong in improving the terms and conditions of employment, particularly of young persons. To give a for examples: an Apprenticeship-Ordinance was brought into force last year to ensure that apprentices are properly trained and fairly treater'; the number of statutory public holidays a year has been incresse' from 6 to 10 from 1 January this year; and the number of cor- pulsory rest days has been increased from 4 a month to one a week, again with effect from the beginning of this year, in order to ensure that every worker has at least one day off a week. At the same time, further safety regulations have been introduced with regard to the guarding and operation of machinery, the operation of goods lifts, the spraying of
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