§ Mr. Parryasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the recent meeting between the Minister of State and unofficial Members of the Executive and Legislative Councils of Hong Kong.
§ Mr. LuceI met a delegation of unofficial Members of Hong Kong's Executive and Legislative Council for an hour on 15 May. My right hon. and learned Friend gave a working dinner on the same day. On both occasions the delegation explained its understanding of the wishes and concerns of the Hong Kong people. It was assured that we well understand the concerns of the Hong Kong people and are taking them fully into account.
§ Mr. Parryasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the meeting of Doctor Ding Lik-Kin of the Hong Kong Christian Committee and other members with the Minister of State.
§ Mr. LuceI met the delegation led by Dr. Ding on 15 May. Members of the delegation gave their views on the development of representative government in Hong Kong. I said that we welcomed further evolution of the process of development already under way but did not wish to impose any specific pattern on Hong Kong. I emphasised that it was for the Government and people of Hong Kong532W to decide what systems were best suited to the territory and noted that the Hong Kong Government would be publishing a Green Paper on this subject this summer.
§ Mr. Parryasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the document "Towards an Elected Government in Hong Kong" which was sent to him by Dr. L. K. Ding.
§ Mr. LuceThe document sets out the views of a delegation from Hong Kong, which Dr. Ding brought to London in early May. It argues for an extension of representative government in Hong Kong. As my right hon. and learned Friend said in the House on 16 May, we support the further development of representative institutions in Hong Kong in the years ahead. The Hong Kong Government have under study a number of proposals in this connection.
§ Mr. Hal Millerasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if the Hong Kong Government are still recruiting civil servants to the permanent and pensionable establishment.
§ Mr. Hal Millerasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the current strength of the Royal Hong Kong police by rank.
§ Mr. LuceTotal strength at 1 January 1984 excluding civilians, was 23,831, made up as follows:
Numbers Officers Local 1,425 Overseas 924 Other Ranks Local 21,445 Overseas 37
§ Mr. Hal Millerasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the currently estimated financial commitment of the Hong Kong Government in respect of pensions for their civil servants (a) already retired and (b) still serving.
§ Mr. LuceThe Hong Kong Government make provision each year in their estimates of expenditure for the payment of pensions, gratuities and other retirement benefits to civil servants. In the financial year 1984–85, the amount required for this is estimated at Hong Kong dollars 984,308,000. No estimate is available of potential financial commitment for officers still serving.
§ Mr. Hal Millerasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many civil servants are on the permanent and pensionable establishment in the Hong Kong Civil Service; and of these how many are serving (a) on expatriate terms and (b) on local terms.
§ Mr. LuceAt 1 January 1984 there were 114,485 civil servants on the permanent and pensionable establishment. A total of 909 were on expatriate terms and 113,576 were on local terms.