ENG-1971 — Page 332

242

CONSTITUTION AND ADMINISTRATION

the Chinese community in Britain. It has special sections to look after the interests of Hong Kong students, including nurses and government trainees, resident in Britain.

GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENTS

The administrative functions of the Government are discharged by about 40 departments, most of which are organised on a func- tional basis and have responsibilities covering the whole Colony. This form of organisation, rather than one based on authorities with responsibilities in a limited geographical area only, is suitable for this small, compact territory and has enabled the Government to provide services without regard to the capacity of residents of various districts to pay taxes.

B

SECRETARIAT FOR HOME AFFAIRS AND

NEW TERRITORIES ADMINISTRATION

The two government departments most closely concerned with the reactions of the people to government policies and plans are the Secretariat for Home Affairs, which controls the City District Officers in the urban areas, and the New Territories Administration under which come the District Officers stationed in the New Territories. Hong Kong Island has four districts, Kowloon six and the New Territories five. A primary function of both departments is to assess the impact of contemplated new policies upon the population and, when they are adopted, to explain these policies to the public. They also report on trends of public opinion in the districts. In this general connection it has long been the practice of these two departments to foster links with a variety of private organisations including, in the urban areas, the Tung Wah Hospitals, Po Leung Kuk, Kaifong Associations, district and clansmen's asso- ciations, multi-storey building associations and religious organisa- tions and youth groups.

The City District Office scheme, modelled on the long-established District Officer system, was introduced during 1968. The 10 City District Officers who are located in the urban areas of Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and New Kowloon, are charged with the threefold duty of rendering services on behalf of the Government, services for the community and services for the individual. They exercise a local co-ordinating function, test public opinion, watch for sources of grievance and tension, and in general try to interpret to the man in the street the measures adopted by a specialised and