MR CHRISTOPHER JOHN TURNER OBE
Mr Turner was born on 17 August 1933 and educated at Truro Cathedral School and Jesus College, Cambridge.
From 1952-54 he served as a Pilot Officer in the Royal Air Force.
He joined the Colonial Service in 1958 and was appointed to Tanganyika (Tanzania) where he served as a District Officer until 1962. From then until 1964 he served as a Regional Local Courts Officer and also as a Magistrate and from 1966-69 served in educational posts teaching English and also serving as an Assistant Headmaster. He retired from HMOCS in 1970 and was appointed an Administrative Officer Class B on contract terms with the British National Service of the New Hebrides in the same year, being first assigned to Santo as British District Agent. He was promoted to Administrative Officer Class A in 1972 and acted as Secretary for Financial Affairs from April to June 1973 before taking up the post of Senior Assistant Secretary (Development). In December 1974 he was appointed Financial Secretary and was promoted Chief Secretary in January 1978, which post he still holds.
Mr Turner was awarded the OBE in the New Year Honours 1978.
He is married (to a Goanese) with three school-age children.
Mr Turner is an extremely able, efficient and intelligent officer, with very high principles and standards. He has a particular talent for finding imaginative and constructive solutions to complicated and frustrating problems. highly regarded as a Financial Secretary and his political judgements as Chief Secretary were always sensible and objec- tive. He has the character and drive to take and enforce unpopular decisions. He does not readily 'mix with the boys' and therefore tends to be regarded wrongly - by subordinates
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as a cold fish. He has the occasional tendency to be long- winded.
Mr Champion, lately Resident Commissioner in Vila, felt that Mr Turner had the presence, authority and experience to do well as the Administrator or Governor of, e.g., one of the Caribbean Territories, but also the intellectual capacity to do a good job in Hong Kong.
STAFF IN CONFIDENCE INDIV
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