CONFIDENTIAL
19 June 1992
Mr Tunstall Esq
Area Two Postings Group
PMD
HKA 233/1
Foreign & Commonwealth
Office
London SWIA 2AH
Telephone: 071-
HONG KONG HMOCS OFFICERS: POSTS IN OTHER DEPENDENT TERRITORIES
1.
(401)
Thank you for copying me your minutes of 2 March and 15 June to Mr Holland in WIAD. I am keen that we should be seen to be doing everything we can to help HMOCS officers in Hong Kong with exploring alternative employment possibilities.
The details are set out below.
2. As Mr Waters mentions in his letter to you of 2 June, we have now started discussions with HMOCS members in Hong Kong about the arrangements that should be introduced as a result of the change of sovereignty of Hong Kong in 1997. HMG has a long history of putting into practice a fairly common set of measures. The policy on this was set out in a White Paper in 1960 and includes: compensation for loss of career; early retirement with early payment of pension; and a sterling safeguard for that pension. HMG also stated that it would do "all in our power" to assist HMOCS officers to find alternative employment.
3.
These arrangements mostly took place some 20 to 30 years ago and are not all considered appropriate for Hong Kong. Specifically, in the case of Hong Kong, we have negotiated a Joint Declaration with the Chinese which covers many of the conditions which would have been introduced in other territories. But the current policy is that we shall not offer early retirement and early payment of pension and we have not come to a view with regard to sterling safeguard. Our current offer of compensation is significantly lower than that given in previous territories.
4. HMOCS members are, perhaps naturally, very disappointed with our policy so far. One of the points they have raised with us is assistance to find other suitable employment.
5.
There is in practice very little we can do in this area. But we must be careful to do all that we can. Our actions in handling these issues may well be the subject of judicial review and we must ensure that we acquit ourselves properly.
JM1ADM
SLM
CONFIDENTIAL
408
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