SCS's speech delivered in the motion debate on "Maintaining the political neutrality of the civil service"
Following is the speech by the Secretary for the Civil Service, Miss Denise YUE, delivered in the motion debate on "Maintaining the political neutrality of the civil service" at the Legislative Council meeting today (November 28):
Madam President,
First of all, I would like to thank Ms Margaret Ng for proposing today's motion debate and all Members who have spoken. The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) is blessed with a quality, professional, clean, politically neutral and permanent civil service. Civil servants are the backbone of the HKSAR Government, providing a solid foundation and stability for its governance and delivering public services in the frontline.
Since the establishment of the HKSAR Government, the civil service has been facing increasing pressure with growing public demand for government services in both quantity and quality. Nevertheless, civil servants could still provide quality services with professionalism and integrity. Their achievements are evident to the public.
The maintenance of a quality, professional, clean, politically neutral and permanent civil service directly hinges on its formation and operation. Some elements are more important, such as civil service appointment system, performance management, promotion arrangements, training and development, discipline and integrity, and the division of functions and duties between politically appointed officials and the civil service. I am going to brief you the measures relating to these elements in the rest of my speech.
Appointment and Promotion
Appointments to the civil service are based on the principle of open and fair competition, as well as the merits of candidates. Civil service vacancies are filled by selection from among suitable candidates. In general, civil service vacancies at basic ranks are normally filled by open recruitment and by in-service appointment from other grades. Having regard to job demands, each grade will specify its basic entry requirements, including academic and professional qualifications, specific skills, work experience, language proficiency, etc. In an open recruitment, applicants who meet the entry requirements are required to attend competitive interviews and/or written examinations. The recruitment board will select suitable candidates on the basis of their merits and overall performance in interviews and written examinations.
It was mentioned in this year's Policy Address that the Basic Law would form part of the civil service recruitment examination. I would like to take this opportunity to explain that the objective of this measure is to promote public awareness of the Basic Law. The knowledge of the Basic Law required of the candidates will be determined according to the entry requirements and job nature of individual grades. We are working out the detailed arrangements, which will be announced in due course. I have to emphasise that the Government will take into account the overall performance of candidates for selection for civil service appointment. Candidates' performance in the Basic Law test will be one of the factors to be considered in the overall assessment and will not affect their eligibility for applying for civil service posts.
Promotions of officers are based on such criteria as ability, character and experience. When vacancies of a higher rank have to be filled, promotion boards will be convened to select suitable officers to fill the vacancies. All eligible candidates are considered with reference to the same set of criteria.
Moreover, as far as higher-ranking posts (i.e. maximum salary at Master Pay Scale Point 26 or above) are concerned, matters concerning their appointment and promotion have to be submitted to the Public Service Commission (PSC) for consideration and advice. The PSC is an independent statutory body. Its chairman and members frequently attend recruitment and promotion board meetings of government departments to observe the procedures of these boards, and to advise on various issues relating to human resources management. The PSC also examines in detail appointment and promotion recommendations to ensure that the appointment and promotion systems are fair and impartial and that selection is based on the merits of candidates.
To ensure that the recruitment and promotion of officers will not be affected by political considerations, all politically appointed officials, with the exception of the Secretary for the Civil Service and the Secretary for Justice, will not sit on any civil service recruitment/promotion boards.
Performance management
Performance management is another important element in maintaining a quality and professional civil service. As I have mentioned, performance is a crucial consideration for promotion. The performance of all serving civil servants is assessed on a regular basis to enable both the staff and the management to understand better their duties and job objectives. Performance management helps departments identify the training and development needs of their staff and motivate them to strive for excellence by reflecting their strengths and weaknesses. It also facilitates management in selecting deserving officers for advancement and taking appropriate actions against poor performers.
In an effort to provide an effective system for performance management, we have put in place well-established and comprehensive procedures to ensure the fairness and impartiality of the existing performance appraisal system in the civil service and to reinforce our performance-based culture. Under the existing triple-assessment system, each appraisal is completed by officers from different ranks, including the appraising, countersigning and reviewing officers respectively. Appraisal interviews are conducted and complaint mechanisms have also been put in place to ensure consistency in assessment standards and fairness in the performance rating in staff appraisals.
We have also introduced different schemes, such as the Commendation Letter Scheme, Staff Motivation Scheme, Staff Suggestions Scheme, Long and Meritorious Service Award Scheme and Civil Service Outstanding Award Scheme, to motivate civil servants to make continuous improvement in service quality or suggestions to enhance civil service efficiency. For instance, under the Commendation Letter Scheme, there are, on average, about 120 civil servants receiving commendation letters from their heads of departments every year for their excellent and outstanding performance. At the central level, a total of 75 civil servants with consistently outstanding performance received awards at the fourth presentation ceremony of the Secretary for the Civil Service's Commendation Awards just held in mid-November this year. Furthermore, in the 2007 Honours List, a total of 120 serving and retired civil servants have received honours or awards from the Chief Executive direct for their contribution to Hong Kong and their public and community service. The honours and awards include Bauhinia Awards and Stars, Medal of Honour, Bravery Awards and Chief Executive's Commendation as well as different awards applicable to the disciplined services.
Also, to maintain a civil service of high standard performance, established procedures have been put in place to order, when necessary, civil servants with persistent sub-standard performance to retire in the public interest under the Public Service (Administration) Order. n 2003 and 2005, we reviewed and streamlined the procedures for ordering sub-standard performers to retire, so that more effective and speedy management action can be taken against those whose performance is not up to the required standard.
Conduct and Integrity
Civil servants are also expected to abide by the code of conduct embodied in various civil service regulations and uphold high standards of probity in both their official capacity and private life. It is clearly stated in the relevant regulations that civil servants should not use their official position to further their private interests, nor accord preferential treatment to organisations or persons with whom they have connections. They are required to uphold the honest and impartial image of the civil service and to observe an exemplary standard of personal integrity in making private investments. They must ensure at all times that there is no conflict of interest between their official duties and private investments. They are also required to report any such possible conflict of interest.
To maintain civil service discipline, we have in place a well-established disciplinary mechanism. Acts of misconduct committed by civil servants will be handled by the Government in strict accordance with the established disciplinary procedures. Depending on the gravity of the misconduct and the specific circumstances of individual cases, the officers concerned may be subject to disciplinary sanctions ranging from warning to dismissal.
I think Members will agree that Hong Kong's civil service is among the cleanest in the world. According to the annual report of the Transparency International released in September this year, Hong Kong ranks 14 among 179 countries and regions in the Corruption Perception Index, one place up as compared with last year. I am also glad to see that the overall number of corruption cases and related convictions involving civil servants has dropped gradually in recent years. This hinges on the close co-operation among the Civil Service Bureau (CSB), the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) and bureaux/departments, and their continuous efforts to build up and enhance the culture of integrity in the civil service over the years.
For instance, we, together with the ICAC, have adopted a number of measures to enhance the integrity management of the civil service, including:
* Formulating regulations and guidelines on the conduct of civil servants, covering problems which may arise when civil servants take part in activities in their official and private capacities.
* Establishing the on-line Resource Centre on Civil Service Integrity Management with continuous updates of information. Cases involving various acts of misconduct have been uploaded for the reference of the management and staff.
* Organising leadership forums to provide opportunities for officers at management level to share experience in ethical leadership and explore the new challenges facing them.
* Launching a Civil Service Integrity Entrenchment Programme. Under the programme, the outreach team, comprising directorate officers from the CSB and the ICAC, visited various bureaux/departments to discuss practical issues in relation to integrity management.
* Introducing the Ethical Leadership Programme in bureaux/departments. The programme aims to embed the culture of integrity through the leadership of the senior management. The CSB and the ICAC also regularly organise workshops and visits to departments. We are establishing an intranet as a platform for sharing opinions among officers responsible for integrity management from all bureaux/departments. We are also preparing for the publication of a booklet to provide civil servants with clear guidelines on the common law offence of "misconduct in public office'.
Training and Development
I think Members will agree that training and development are pivotal to maintaining a quality and professional civil service.
We believe that diversified training should be provided to cater for the needs of civil servants of senior, middle and junior levels. For senior colleagues, we provide training courses on leadership, reaching out to the community, response to the media and response to the parliament, etc.
Regarding civil servants of other levels, we are also committed to providing training courses on general management, human resources management, languages, communication skills, information technology and customer service, as well as courses tailor-made for the implementation of specific initiatives or projects undertaken by departments or bureaux, etc.
Political neutrality of the civil service
Madam President, today's motion also touches on the important issue of how to maintain a politically neutral civil service under the Political Appointment System. Maintaining a politically neutral civil service has always been the core value upheld by the Government. It will only assume an increasingly important role under a changing political landscape.
The most fundamental principle for the political neutrality of the civil service is that civil servants should assist the Chief Executive and the politically appointed officials of the day in formulating policies, implementing decisions taken and administering the public services under their charge - whatever their political assertion - with full loyalty. This is also the constitutional obligation of the civil service. Article 99 of the Basic Law stipulates that public servants must be dedicated to their duties and be responsible to the HKSAR Government. Public servants certainly include civil servants. Category (1) of Article 48 of the Basic Law provides that the Chief Executive is to lead the Government of the HKSAR. Article 60 of the Basic Law also provides that the head of the HKSAR Government shall be the Chief Executive of the HKSAR.
After the introduction of the Accountability System in 2002 and in the course of moving towards the election of the Chief Executive by universal suffrage, the full loyalty of civil servants towards the incumbent Chief Executive and maintaining the political neutrality of the civil service have become more important than ever. Through rendering loyal service, civil servants can secure the trust of the Chief Executive, Principal Officials and the Government of the day irrespective of their political assertion. On the other hand, when a new Chief Executive and new Principal Officials assume office, and when a new Government is formed, the permanent civil service will likewise serve them with loyalty, even though the political assertion of the new Government may be different from the previous one. Only through this could civil servants secure the trust of every Chief Executive and every term of the HKSAR Government.
Upon the introduction of the Accountability System in 2002, the CSB issued a set of guidelines to all civil servants, explaining in detail the roles and responsibilities of civil servants and Principal Officials, and in particular, the principles and key elements of political neutrality. These guidelines are also applicable to the further development of the Political Appointment System. Some of the key elements include:
* civil servants will loyally assist the Chief Executive and the politically appointed officials of the day to their best abilities when discharging duties, and tender honest and clear advice in the process of policy formulation. They will, when necessary, debate issues with the incumbent Principal Officials.
* once decisions are taken by the Chief Executive or the Principal Officials concerned, civil servants will, regardless of their personal convictions or positions, fully support and faithfully implement the decisions taken.
* civil servants will assist Principal Officials in explaining and defending decisions taken so as to gain the support of the public and the Legislative Council.
* civil servants, whether they agree to or object to the policy concerned, shall neither express their own views in public nor raise a different opinion throughout the process.
To further maintain the political neutrality of the civil service, it is the government policy that serving civil servants, with the only exception of the Secretary for the Civil Service, must leave the civil service once they accept an offer to fill a politically appointed position.
To maintain the tie between the Secretary for the Civil Service and civil servants, the candidate for the position of the Secretary for the Civil Service is selected from among serving civil servants. He or she can join the civil service again upon the expiry of his or her term of office.
The Secretary for the Civil Service is responsible for civil service policies and management. One of his or her main duties is to uphold the core values of the civil service. This arrangement helps the incumbent of the position in maintaining the integrity and political neutrality of the civil service.
Some Members have just pointed out that it is inappropriate for civil servants to assist Principal Officials in defending or promoting contentious political decisions under the Political Appointment System. I have to point out that there are not more than 20 politically appointed officials under the existing Political Appointment System, and will not be more than 40 in the future. In fact, this job will be never-ending if all the important duties of explaining government policies, including defending and promoting such policies, are entrusted to the 40 politically appointed officials alone. We therefore hold that the concept of a politically neutral civil service does not mean that civil servants need not engage in any work with political content. As mentioned earlier, civil servants have the responsibility to explain and promote government policies. Once decisions are taken by the political tier, civil servants will, regardless of their personal convictions, implement the decisions taken and discharge their public functions without fear or favour.
In fact, senior civil servants have all along been involved in work with political content. I mean explaining and defending government policies and decisions, and lobbying for support for them. But they must remain neutral and are not in favour of any political party when performing such duties. In formulating and implementing policies, no consideration should be given to the interests of political parties, and any contact with political parties should be restricted to discussions of issues of concern. Also, civil servants can, when necessary, explain and promote government policies to political parties and political groups.
The political team will play a more crucial role in undertaking political work after the new political appointment positions have been created. This, however, does not mean that civil servants, particularly senior and experienced officers, will not be required to take part in, for instance, any parliamentary work. Engaging in such work is not contradictory to the principle of political neutrality of the civil service.
I also understand that some Members are greatly concerned whether the political neutrality of the civil service will be affected in a changing political environment, in particular if civil servants may be chosen to take up political appointments. In this regard, the Government has put in place adequate preventive measures to ensure the political neutrality of the civil service in discharging duties. We have clear guidelines governing civil servants' participation in political activities. The primary objective of the guidelines is to ensure that civil servants should enjoy their individual civil and political rights but at the same time the civil service should remain impartial and no conflict of interest should arise in the course of discharging official duties.
As regards standing for elections and participating in electioneering activities, all civil servants are currently disqualified from being nominated as candidates or being elected to the District Councils, the Legislative Council, or as the Chief Executive in accordance with respective laws (i.e. the District Councils Ordinance, the Legislative Council Ordinance and the Chief Executive Election Ordinance). We have issued separate guidelines for each election to remind our colleagues of matters requiring attention. Before each election, we would remind them again to read the guidelines. Under no circumstances would a civil servant be allowed to use his official position or public resources to canvass votes. Neither should they disclose official information which has been communicated in confidence within the Government or received in confidence from others.
We have also clearly spelled out the criteria or requirements the Government has adopted in governing civil servants' participation in political activities. For example, officers who are involved in policy formulation or in the enforcement of public order are prohibited from participating in political activities as their involvement would give rise to questions about the impartiality of the civil service. This being the case, we will ask them not to participate in political activities within the Hong Kong context and activities relating to political parties.
Civil servants must remain impartial in discharging duties and should not be in favour of any political parties. Should Members encounter cases of this kind, I hope they will immediately provide details to the department or bureau concerned, including the management of the CSB, for follow-up actions. Should Members think that these are cases of maladministration, they could report them to the Office of the Ombudsman.
Should civil service colleagues have doubts about the requirements and instructions given by the politically appointed officials, they can discuss with their supervisors and seek the advice of their respective Permanent Secretary when necessary. If the doubts still cannot be cleared after discussions between the Permanent Secretary and the politically appointed official concerned, including Principal Official, the case can be presented to the Secretary for the Civil Service for action and solution. If necessary, the Secretary for the Civil Service will report the case to the Chief Secretary for Administration, the Financial Secretary or the Secretary for Justice, or directly to the Chief Executive for consideration.
Apart from political neutrality, I note some Members have pointed out that there will be some impact on the civil service after the implementation of the Accountability System. I would like to briefly respond to this as follows:
There are comments that the Accountability System will do away with the head of the civil service, resulting in a lack of connection among departments. I would like to clarify this point.
The Chief Secretary for Administration is mainly responsible for assisting the Chief Executive in overseeing the work entrusted to bureaux by the Chief Executive, including the work of the CSB. He or she should also ensure good co-ordination in the formulation and implementation of policies within his or her ambit. The Secretary for the Civil Service is mainly responsible for civil service policies and management. Under the Accountability System, the division of responsibilities is clear between the two positions.
Civil service policies are among the most important government policies. Like any other Principal Officials, the Secretary for the Civil Service has to assume full responsibility for all matters within his or her portfolio. As a Member of the Executive Council, the Secretary for the Civil Service, with his or her civil service background, can directly influence the considerations or decisions relating to civil service matters. He or she takes into full account the roles and concern of the civil service when the Government makes any important decisions. The CSB is responsible for the effectiveness of civil service policies and management. In particular, the Bureau has to uphold the beliefs and practice of maintaining the basic core values of an honest, efficient, professional and meritocratic civil service.
Regarding the connection between departments, there is an established mechanism to coordinate the communication between and operation of various bureaux and departments. Matters involving more than one bureau/department will first be coordinated by the bureau and department concerned. Should there be issues which cannot be resolved immediately, there is also a mechanism under which the issue can be submitted to the Secretaries for instruction or referred to the more senior level policy committees for solution. The existing mechanisms work effectively and have not been affected by the implementation of the Accountability System.
Some Members are concerned that there will be impact on the civil service system if outstanding civil servants are appointed as Principal Officials, Deputy Secretaries or Political Assistants. Members can rest assured that the Government has put in place a well established system in developing staff and grooming successors to ensure that civil service posts will, despite continuous staff changes, still be filled by officers of suitable calibre.
In fact, regarding the further development of the Political Appointment System, I believe Members will agree that politically appointed positions should be taken up by committed and competent persons from different sectors of the community. I do not think that civil servants should be excluded from being considered for such positions.
Functions and division of responsibilities between the civil service and politically appointed officials
The motion debate proposed by Ms Margaret NG today also brings out an important issue - the division of responsibilities and cooperation between the civil service and politically appointed officials. In this regard, I believe that given the direction of our current political development, no one will dispute that there is a genuine need to clarify more clearly the functions and roles of the civil service and politically appointed officials. It is for this reason that the Chief Executive announced in the Policy Agenda released last month that in line with the expansion of the Political Appointment System, a Civil Service Code will be issued, setting out the framework within which civil servants are expected to work with politically appointed officials under an expanded Political Appointment System.
This Civil Service Code will be conducive to maintaining the political neutrality of the civil service in the further development of the Political Appointment System. It will define the principles and values to be followed and upheld by the civil servants, and their roles and responsibilities under the expanded Political Appointment System. It will also clarify the working relationship between the civil service and politically appointed officials.
The CSB is now drafting the details of the Code. At this stage, we envisage that the draft will be completed in the first quarter of 2008. We will consult the staff sides and the PSC. We will then submit the draft to the relevant Legislative Council panel for discussion.
In passing, I would like to point out that apart from civil servants efforts, full cooperation of politically appointed officials is also essential to the maintenance of the political neutrality of the civil service. In this regard, the responsibilities of politically appointed officials in relation to civil servants are clearly provided for in the existing Code for Officials under the Political Appointment System. In particular, one of the provisions specifies that politically appointed officials shall at all times actively uphold and promote a permanent, honest, meritocratic, professional and politically neutral civil service.
Madam President, I believe that with the concerted efforts of all parties, the civil service will continue to cooperate fully with the politically appointed officials in serving the public with dedication and professionalism.
Conclusion
Madam President, the maintenance of a quality, professional, clean, permanent and politically neutral civil service is the common wish of all Members in this Council and all citizens of the HKSAR. As the Secretary for the Civil Service, I will continue to exert myself to this end.
Madam President, I support Ms Margaret Ng's motion.
Thank you, Madam President.
Wednesday, November 28, 2007