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CONFIDENTIAL
NOTE
PUBLIC PRONOUNCEMENTS BY HMG ON ELIGIBILITY FOR STERLING SAFEGUARDS
1.
I have checked the file record on the assertion in paragraph 3 of Mr Cox's August minute to Mr Ricketts on this subject, that all our statements on safeguarding pensions have been in respect of HMOCS officers only.
2. I have perused the correspondence we had in 1985 with the Overseas Service Pensioners Association (OSPA) and the Association of Expatriates Civil Servants (AECS). It is true to say that the clear focus of all correspondence has been on HMOCS members. But OSPA have frequently quoted from the 1954 and 1960 White Papers on this subject which refer to overseas pensionable officers while then going on to argue the case for HMOCS officers. I enclose an example. In our replies we have normally focused entirely on HMOCS. There is only one example that I have found so far where we deal with
other pensionable overseas civil servants. This is on page 2 of Mr Luce's letter to Mr Pusinelli dated 15 April 1985. But this dealt with compensation and the fact that HKG will be taking appropriate steps.
3.
The correspondence I have found with AECS is less clear. Their letter of 1 August 1985 to Mr Luce indicates that there was previous correspondence but unfortunately I have not
(yet) been able to trace it on our files.
•
In Mr Cox's minute to Mr Ricketts he suggests we might be able to duck the issue by making clear that we will make sure that the interests of these officers will not be over-looked. We may be able to take this approach. If Mr Fifoot is content for us not to have to explain our position, I think we can probably rely on the sort of formulation used in 1984 on general safeguards for all civil servants. This was in the following terms: we were conscious of our general responsibilities which were to see that adequate arrangements were made in the Joint Declaration about payment of pension; we were confident that the arrangements in the Joint Declaration provided full security; as to the future, it would be for the Government of the day to decide what action it would be right to take in any given set of circumstances.
safe.gds.ADM
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CONFIDENTIAL
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