TNAG-0739-FCO40-943-Employment-of-Hong-Kong-civil-servants-in-Hong-Kong-and-Gene-1980 — Page 26

TFF IN C. IN ACL

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RECEIVES BUSTY MO. 51

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DK OFFICER

INDEX

REGISTRY

PA

Action Twicen

15 June 1978

NO

HE Sir Murray Maclehose GBE KCMG KOV

HNG KONG

See

EME LOYMENT OF HONG KONG CIVIL SERVANTS IN HONG ECNC

KD GERER. I DEVAKTMENT

Thank you for your letter of & így about putting Feter williams inte long on and General Department, ci into some sjec al PC slot as dviser' on Hong Kong affairs.

2 All concerned here share your view that there is much merit in putting someone from long kong into the Lepartment for a normal tour of duty. However it would be impossible to fit Feter williams into such a slot: Le is ruch too senior for the Iepartment and the administrative and functional disadvantages of creating a separate post for hir would, I fear, outweigh the benefit you and we might hope to gain. What is needed is someone in the third room of the Department who is senior enougu to provide authoritative and direct first-hand advice on the actual circumstances in the Colony but at the same time not too old to profit from experience of whitehall which would stend him in good stead after he returns to long long. The ideal candidate would thus be the equivalent of e Firet Secretary in his riddle 30s. If you could suggest a candidate who would fit this description, we would be glad to see if he could be fitted in. Ee could of course come to us under the terms recently agreed for reciprocal sec.ndments.

3

Incidentally I ou ht to put the record right about leter illiams' prospects for other dependent territories' jobs. was considered last year for the Governorships of the Gilberts and the Curks and Caicos but in the event the BT B preferred other candidster for both vacancies. He remains on our books as somebody who might be considered for future f.cancies. as John Stewart told him in a letter of 9 December last year, there is not much on the horizon for the next year or so. Certainly we do not expect there to be a vacancy in the Cayman Islands until at least 1980.

However,

Edward Youde

STAFF IN CONFIDE.CL