TNAG-1379-FCO40-1827-Future-of-Hong-Kong-legislation-Hong-Kong-Bill-1985 — Page 130

CONFIDENTIAL

(3) An Order under this paragraph may be made

SO as to have effect

from the relevant date or as respects any time before or after that

date.

(4) A statutory instrument containing an

shall be subject to annulment in pursuance

House of Parliament.

Order under this paragraph

of a resolution of either

to

The effect of this amendment would be

be to enable HMG to provide by

Order in Council for the payment of pensions and other benefits

persons who are members of the Hong Kong Civil Service before 1 July

1997.

RESIST

LINE TO TAKE

•

I will now consider amendment No

The purpose of this

amendment seems to be to enable the Government to provide by Order

in Council for matters relating to members and ex-members of the

Hong Kong public service, particularly as concerns the payment of

pensions and other benefits.

The first thing to say about this

amendment is that it is not

to make provision

necessary for the purpose which I as sume the noble Lord has in mind.

The Government already has extensive powers

for

pensions and other benefits under the Overseas Pensions Act 1973.

Moreover in the extremely unlikely event that these powers were ever to prove insufficient in the case of Hong Kong, it would be possible

to amend or add to them by me ans of

paragraph as already drafted.

an Order-in-Council under

this

to

The Government remain fully alert to their responsibilities for

seeing that adequate arrangements are

are made for the payment of

pensions earned in the service of the Government. As I explained my noble friend Lord Gridley when he raised this issue during the

debate on the Second Reading, the Government consider that the agreement provides satisfactorily for the continuity of service by members of the public service in Hong Kong on terms and conditions,

including pay and pensions, no less favourable than on 30 June 1997.

CONFIDENTIAL