ENG-2005 — Page 49

Constitution and Administration | 23

and departments to assume greater ownership in human resource management. The mechanism for handling persistent substandard performers was reviewed and further streamlined in 2005 to expedite their compulsory retirement from the service.

As part of its ongoing efforts to embed a culture of probity in the civil service, the Civil Service Bureau, in collaboration with the Independent Commission Against Corruption, has (i) embarked on a Civil Service Integrity Entrenchment Programme under which an outreach team led by directorate officers visited departments to discuss integrity management issues; and (ii) staged a leadership forum, 'Successes through Ethical Governance', in June 2005. The bureau also published an updated version of the 'Civil Servants' Guide to Good Practices'. Meanwhile, continuous efforts are being made to enrich the reference materials available on the electronic 'Resource Centre on Integrity Management' accessible on-line to officers responsible for integrity management in bureaux and departments.

Official Languages

Chinese and English are the official languages of Hong Kong. It is the Government's policy to develop and maintain a civil service that is proficient in both written Chinese and English and conversant in Cantonese, Putonghua and spoken English. While reports and publications of public interest issued by the Government are available in both languages, correspondence with the public is in the language appropriate to the recipients. The Official Languages Division of the Civil Service Bureau monitors the implementation of the Government's language policy in the civil service. It gives language-related support to all government bureaux and departments, including the provision of translation service, the drafting of speeches and editing of important documents in Chinese for senior officers. Simultaneous and consecutive interpretation services are provided at official meetings and functions. when necessary.

The division also provides language research and support services. It helps maintain the momentum of wider use of Chinese in the civil service through a wide range of activities including seminars and lectures on Chinese language and culture. It runs a help desk which answers telephone enquiries from civil servants on the use of official languages. The division develops writing aids and reference materials, such as guidebooks on official Chinese writing and English-Chinese glossaries of terms commonly used in government departments. In order to enhance the interest of civil servants in Chinese and English, it publishes a quarterly newsletter entitled Word Power. These publications and reference materials can be accessed at the Civil Service Bureau's home page (www.csb.gov.hk).

Government Records Service

The Government Records Service (GRS) manages government records and provides a wide range of records and archival management services.

GRS develops and oversees the implementation of records management policies and systems. It gives guidance and provides training to government departments on best practice in records management. It operates two Records Centres for cost-