TNAG-1357-FCO40-1798-Constitutional-development-in-Hong-Kong-1985 — Page 26

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Legislative Council Working Procedures

39.

The line of development will depend largely on how

the new membership develops its own organisation.

Options

are:

40.

a)

to develop the Standing and ad hoc UMELCO

Groups and Panels, which function outside the

Legislative Council, are not directly responsible

to it, and whose meetings are not normally open to

the public; or

b)

create, using as much as possible the present

system, policy review committees which are more

formally part of the Legislative Council, and therefore

operate more publicly; or

c) to create Standing Policy Committees of

Council with specific policy responsibilities, with

(civil servant) Policy Secretaries as members; to

ensure linkages between, by way of memberships, the

Executive and Legislative Councils; the Standing

Policy Committees and the Chief Secretary's Policy

Groups.

The objectives are to root authority in the

Legislative Council, to ensure that it functions openly and

responsibly; and to improve the integration of the process

of policy formulation between Executive Council, Legislative

Council and the Administration.

•

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