ENG-1964 — Page 239

212

PRESS, BROADCASTING AND CINEMA

165 films, comprising a regular weekly news magazine from Britain and documentaries, were supplied to Rediffusion's television circuit for local showing.

PUBLIC ENQUIRY SERVICE

However comprehensive or efficient the techniques of mass communication they cannot hope to answer for each individual the questions of his or her personal situation as it is affected by the actions and policies of Government. It was to meet this special need that the Public Enquiry Service was set up and has proved its great value as a link between officialdom, with its inevitable anonymity and its generalizations, and the general public as in- dividuals. At conveniently situated public counters any member of the public can sit down before a sympathetic and well-informed listener who will help them to discover how this or that piece of legislation affects them personally. Each member of the staff speaks English, Cantonese and a number of other dialects. To meet the demand for this service a third counter was opened at the end of the year in Wan Chai to supplement the original offices in the Central District and in Kowloon. On an average the service handles 10,500 enquiries in a normal month. However, when typhoons affect the Colony these figures are entirely overwhelmed. At such times the service is continuously manned and the telephones ring almost incessantly with questions about the weather position, the availability of public transport and other services and the post- ponement of public functions.

J