TNAG-1449-FCO40-1953-Minutes-and-Hansards-of-the-Legislative-Council-of-Hong-Kong-1986 — Page 165

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Valedictory Speech by HE the Governor:

LegCo on 28 May 1986

Honourable Members. This is the last occasion on

which the Financial Secretary, Sir John Bremridge, will

attend as a Member of this Council.

I scarcely need to remind you of Sir John's long

and distinguished services. He first joined this Council

as an Unofficial Member in July 1974 and served in that

capacity until December 1980. He subsequently rejoined the

Council as an ex-officio Member following his appointment

as Financial Secretary in June 1981. His combined service

as an Unofficial and as an Official spans 11-1/2 years.

Sir John took over as Financial Secretary just as

the world was experiencing a recession of considerable

severity. Given the exposure of our economy to external

forces, this alone would have called for skill and determination. Yet Sir John not only successfully brought Hong Kong's economy through an external crisis, he has successfully steered it through a series of internal problems

the collapse of the property market, the currency crisis

of September 1983, and a number of serious problems in the

banking sector.

Financial Secretaries and Finance Ministers would

probably agree that their objectives are to promote a sound

/currency, low inflation,

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