ENG-2001 — Page 38

LAYING THE FOUNDATIONS FOR A MORE ACCOUNTABLE GOVERNMENT

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All Principal Officials under the Accountability System will be appointed to the Executive Council. The original 16 Policy Bureaux will be revised to 11. Including the three Secretaries of Departments, following the restructuring, there will be 14 Principal Officials covered by the Accountability System. They will participate directly in the Government's policy decision-making, in prioritising the policy agenda, and in harmonising the work which straddles different departments. In overall terms, the work of the Executive Council will be strengthened; governance will be improved; decision-making will be quickened; responses to the demands of the community and the needs of the public will be more direct. In accordance with the provisions of the Basic Law, the Executive Council may continue to include other community leaders and Members of the Legislative Council.

In implementing the Accountability System, the Chief Executive will be devolving further his authority to the 14 Principal Officials. The restructured system will give the Principal Officials a clear understanding of their respective responsibility, strengthen solidarity, enhance the internal working relationship and smoothen co-operation. The team will be able to set, co-ordinate and implement policies more effectively to meet the needs of the community and our expectations. They will also be able to meet proactively the challenges facing Hong Kong. The checks and balances designed for the HKSAR, including those in respect of the Chief Executive and the Executive Authorities, will not be diminished following introduction of the Accountability System. The Legislative Council will continue to play the same important role in holding the Government accountable.

The continuity and the stability of the civil service structure will be preserved under the Accountability System. We are determined to preserve and enhance the distinctive qualities of the civil service system i.e. permanence, professionalism, political neutrality, and an uncorrupt administration. These are the qualities which I, and the Principal Officials under the Accountability System in future, would wish to preserve. I also believe that the community takes the same view. We wish to preserve these qualities, because they are essential to the good governance of the HKSAR.

Under the new arrangement, the Chief Executive will have a team of politically appointed Policy Secretaries in the Executive Council. They will be underpinned by Permanent Secretaries and a professional, meritocratic and politically neutral civil service. It is a well-tested system very similar to what applies in mature and developed jurisdictions around the world. We have emphasised the importance of retaining the D8 rank of Permanent Secretary as part of the civil service system. We have taken this view in order to preserve the integrity of the civil service system, to guarantee that we will continue to attract the best and the brightest to the civil service career, and to ensure that our community will benefit from having such talent to provide public service of the highest quality.

The Permanent Secretaries will act as the interface between Directors of Bureaux and the Civil Service. Under the direction of the Directors of Bureaux, the Permanent Secretaries will be responsible for formulating and implementing policies, listening to the views of the public and the Legislative Council, explaining policies to these respective groups, responding to questions raised and gaining support from different quarters for government policies.

By introducing the Accountability System in responding to public demands, the HKSAR Government will bring about a new style of governance. The Principal Officials will place importance on public opinion; they will make further efforts to