TNAG-1427-FCO40-1910-Vietnamese-refugees-in-Hong-Kong-general-1986 — Page 23

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Ms D J Walker

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Your reference

UNS 243/18

Our reference

16 December 1985

Date

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UNHCR: VISIT TO THE UK BY MR KEVIN LYONETTE

1.

нкс 243/5

RECEIVED IN REGISTRY

19 DEC 1985

DESK OFFICER

INDEX

REGISTRY

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Kevin Lyonette called, as arranged, on Paul Lever with Mr von Arnim on 11 December.

2. Mr Lyonette, as usual, came across well. We discussed the infamous McCollum amendment in some detail and the quality of UNHCR's management and administration generally. Mr Lyonette said that the amendment had been passed by Congress exceptionally; such amendments, like Early Day Motions in Parliament, were normally intended only to provoke reaction, not to become legislation. Senator McCollum had apparently been concerned at certain aspects of UNHCR's activities in Central America and Pakistan. In the case of Pakistan, there were justifiable complaints about health services, which UNHCR had agreed were inadequate. The objections in the case of Central America were more ideological than technical. On top of this had come the 1984 report on UNHCR of the Board of Auditors with its critical comment on procurement procedure and a presumptive fraud. A satisfactory solution had now been found by hiving off part of the work of the Board of Auditors to an external agency; this was fortunately provided for under the procedures. The US pledge to UNHCR at the donors' meeting in November had been much lower than usual; this had, however, nothing to do with the McCollum amendment. It was rather. a consequence of a quirk in the US budget and UNHCR had been assured that a further pledge could be expected to bring the contribution up to its usual level.

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Mr Lyonette said that UNHCR's programme control and delivery had much improved in recent years. UNHCR was probably alone among the UN agencies in having proposed reductions in its programme budgets, following mid-year reviews, in each year since 1980. expenditure against target was regularly of the order of 96% good commentary on its planning and budgeting. Furthermore UNHCR had in successive years consistently reduced its carry-over to the new financial year.

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