TNAG-2168-FCO40-3105-House-of-Commons-Foreign-Affairs-Committee-inquiry-into-Hong-1990 — Page 64

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9.

In 1995, the key factor in broadening and refining

the system will be the satisfactory identification of an

unambiguous electorate for other constituencies. We will be

looking, for example, to define a constituency to represent

the interests of the retail trade. We hope that members of

this and other potential groups will organise themselves in

such a way as to facilitate definition of that

constituency.

10.

From October 1991 the only ex-officio members of

this Council will be the Chief Secretary, the Attorney

General and the Financial Secretary. We will be proposing

arrangements which will allow Branch Secretaries to attend

before Council by invitation, but without the right to

vote. This will allow greater flexibility, in that the

Secretary directly responsible for a particular subject

will be able to attend before Council to introduce

legislation and to respond to questions.

The latter, we

feel certain, will be a distinct improvement over present

practice. It will also help prepare us for the position.

after 1997 when all officials will have been withdrawn from

this council and will sit only in attendance.

11.

These changes, taken together with the reduction

in the number of appointed members to 18, will produce a

Council of sixty members, comprising three roughly equal

parts: directly elected, functional and appointed.