EC(97-98)33
For discussion
on 19 November 1997


ITEM FOR ESTABLISHMENT SUBCOMMITTEE OF
FINANCE COMMITTEE

HEAD 92 - DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Subhead 001 Salaries

Members are invited to recommend to Finance Committee -

  1. the creation of the following permanent posts -

    1 Administrative Officer Staff Grade " A "
    (D6) ($162,650)

    1 Administrative Officer Staff Grade " C "
    (D2) ($110,000 - $116,800)

  2. the retitling of the existing rank of Administrator, Department of Justice to Deputy Director (Administration), Department of Justice.

PROBLEM

The Department of Justice does not have the necessary administrative support at an appropriate level to strengthen its management and enhance its capability to undertake new initiatives.

PROPOSAL

2.We propose to -

  1. create one Administrative Officer Staff Grade " A " post (AOSG " A " ) (D6) ($162,650), as the Director of Administration and Development, to administer the Department and to report to the Legislative Council as Controlling Officer in accounting for the Department's activities;

  2. create one Administrative Officer Staff Grade " C " post (AOSG " C " ) (D2) ($110,000 - $116,800) to head a Development Section to undertake and help coordinate new initiatives; and

  3. retitle the existing rank of Administrator, Department of Justice to Deputy Director (Administration), Department of Justice.

JUSTIFICATION

Role of Secretary for Justice

3.The Secretary for Justice (SJ) plays a role which is of central importance in maintaining the rule of law. The SJ is the principal legal adviser to the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). She presents and defends the Government's legal policies in the Legislative Council and in public. As guardian of the law, she provides independent advice on the propriety and constitutionality of acts undertaken or to be undertaken by the Administration. The SJ has the power to decide whether to proceed with prosecutions in individual cases and she must exercise this ultimate authority independently, without interference by any other party. In addition, she also plays the following roles -

  1. the SJ is an ex-officio member of the Executive Council;

  2. she is the defendant in all civil actions brought against the Government and represents both the Government and the public interest in courts;

  3. she may also apply and/or contest application for judicial review to enforce public legal rights and may intervene in any court cases where an issue of great public interest arises;

  4. as the Protector of Charities, the SJ must be joined in all actions to enforce charitable and public trusts;

  5. as Chairman of the Law Reform Commission, the SJ oversees the generation of new proposals and long term initiatives;

  6. she advises Government departments and bureaux and explains to the public the Government's position on legal issues; and

  7. she has to liaise with the two branches of the legal profession on matters of practice for ensuring the promotion of better legal services.

4.The scope of the SJ's responsibilities is effectively equivalent to that of justice ministers in other jurisdictions. In addition to the legal responsibilities, as the head of the Department of Justice, the SJ is also accountable to the Legislative Council for its administration including the multifarious responsibilities of finance, personnel, localisation and other operational matters. It is difficult for one individual to cover both the professional and administrative responsibilities at the same time. It is in fact prevalent in common law jurisdictions for Justice Departments and major law firms to assign management responsibilities to a senior administrator.

Current Organisation of the Department

5.Under the Basic Law, the Department of Justice is one of the three main departments of the Government of the HKSAR.(1) It comprises 270 lawyers and over 1 000 other staff in total. It has five Legal Divisions, and an Administration Division. Heading each of the Legal Divisions is a Law Officer at DL6. They are responsible for covering specific legal portfolios i.e. Legal Policy, Civil Law, Prosecutions, Law Drafting and International Law. The portfolios of the Legal Divisions are well established and provide important services to the Government in their respective areas.

6.At present, heading the Administration Division is an Administrator at D3 who oversees the management of the Department and acts as the Controlling Officer in accounting to the Legislative Council for the Department's activities. The SJ's Office is staffed by one Principal Government Counsel (DL3) to provide her with professional support and an AOSG " C " (D2) as her Administrative Assistant. We set out the current organisation structure of the Department of Justice at Enclosure 1.

The Need for the Senior Administrator

7.In view of the key role played by the Department of Justice in the Government of the HKSAR, the importance of its work, and the seniority of the staff heading the various Legal Divisions, we consider it necessary to appoint a more senior officer as an administrator to oversee its management and to act as Controlling Officer in accounting to the Legislative Council for the Department's activities. This will strengthen support to the SJ on the administrative and strategic development of the Department.

Role of the Senior Administrator

8.We propose establishing a new position of Director of Administration and Development (Director) to assist the SJ in administering the Department. The roles of the Director are as follows -

  1. Controlling Officer

    As Controlling Officer, the Director will represent the Department before the Finance Committee, the Establishment Subcommittee and relevant LegCo Panels. He will oversee the coordination of and be responsible for the Department's submissions to the Legislative Council in this regard. Where necessary, colleagues of the various Legal Divisions will attend with the Director before the relevant LegCo committees and panels to present proposals.

  2. Strategic Development of the Department

    The Director will assist the SJ in shaping the strategy for the Department's development in order to meet the long term needs of the SARG and the community. The Director will liaise with other bureaux and departments to ensure that the initiatives of the Department of Justice will complement the programme of the SARG as a whole.

  3. Administration of the Department

    The Director will oversee the work of the Administration Division and its interface with the Legal Divisions and the Government Secretariat. The Director will also oversee the Department's liaison with staff associations. The Administrator, to be re-titled as Deputy Director (Administration), will continue to be responsible for the day-to-day management of the Administration Division. He will assist the Director in dealing with resource management, departmental administration and the implementation of the Information Systems Strategy Plan.

  4. Staff Development

    The Director will oversee the strategy and programmes for staff training and development in consultation with Law Officers and other parts of the Administration. This will be a most important area of work to ensure that qualified personnel are available in the long term to assume management positions in the Department.

  5. Media and Public Relations

    The Director will supervise the Public Relations and Information Unit and oversee the development of the Department's media and public relations. Where necessary and appropriate, he will act as spokesman for the SJ. He will also represent the SJ in receiving important visitors and liaise with community leaders for seeking their views or explaining the Department's position on key issues.

  6. Other administrative duties

    Where appropriate, the Director will relieve the SJ (and Law Officers) of administrative duties by assuming responsibility for internal departmental committees. He will also chair or take part in committees or working groups concerning other departments and organisations in which the SJ is involved.

9.Having regard to the scope of responsibility and the size of the Department, we consider that the rank of AOSG " A " (D6) will be appropriate for the Director. We set out the job descriptions of the proposed Director and Deputy Director at Enclosures 2 and 3 respectively.

Development Section

10.In addition, we propose establishing a small Development Section to be headed by an AOSG " C " designated as Assistant Director (Development) to provide a focal point for coordinating new initiatives, in particular where there are important issues involving several divisions within the Department. For example, there are proposals to establish a high power steering committee with the SJ as Chairman to promote and oversee the implementation of bilingualism in the legal system. This will involve input from various Legal Divisions, the legal profession and other parts of the Administration. If taken forward, the Development Section will provide the committee secretariat for this steering group and act as a focal point for overall coordination. The Assistant Director will also be responsible for overseeing the day to day running of the Public Relations and Information Unit. We set out the job description of the Assistant Director (Development) at Enclosure 4.

11.In essence, these proposals will provide the Department of Justice with capability at a senior management level to oversee departmental administration, public and media relations and the development of new initiatives, so as to enhance its accountability to the Legislative Council and to the public. We set out the proposed re-organised structure of the Department at Enclosure 5.

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

12.The additional notional annual salary cost of this proposal at MID-POINT is -

$No. of Posts
New permanent posts3,312,6002

13.The additional full annual average staff cost of the proposals, including salaries and staff on-costs, is $6,050,436. This proposal will necessitate the creation of one additional Senior Personal Secretary (SPS) post, at an additional notional annual mid-point salary cost of $365,160 and an additional full annual average staff cost of $614,760. We have included sufficient provision in the 1997-98 Estimates to meet the cost of the AOSG " A " post and the SPS post. We have not included the necessary provision in the 1997-98 Estimates to meet the cost of the AOSG " C " post, which is estimated to be $453,600 for the remainder of the year. Subject to Members' approval, we shall provide the supplementary provision required under delegated authority.

CIVIL SERVICE BUREAU's COMMENTS

14.The Civil Service Bureau considers the ranking and grading of the proposed new posts to be appropriate having regard to their duties and level of responsibilities.

ADVICE OF THE STANDING COMMITTEE ON DIRECTORATE SALARIES AND CONDITIONS OF SERVICE

15.The Standing Committee on Directorate Salaries and Conditions of Service has advised that the grading proposed for the posts would be appropriate if the posts were to be created.


Department of Justice
November 1997

(LU0046WIN3)


(1) Article 60 provides for the establishment of a Department of Administration, Department of Finance and Department of Justice.


Enclosure 2 to EC(97-98)33

Job Description of the Proposed
Director of Administration and Development

Rank :Administrative Officer Staff Grade " A " (D6)
Responsible to : Secretary for Justice

Main Duties and Responsibilities :

  1. Strategic Development of the Department

    The Director of Administration and Development will advise the Secretary for Justice on strategies for shaping the development of the Department and design programmes for achieving agreed objectives.

  2. Controlling Officer

    As Controlling Officer, the Director will represent the Department of Justice before the Finance Committee, Establishment Subcommittee and relevant LegCo Panels to present the Department's proposals and to account for the Department's activities.

  3. Executive Council and Legislative Council Input

    The Director will advise the Secretary for Justice on the implications of major issues concerning the Department of Justice being submitted to the Executive and Legislative Councils. He will liaise with other bureaux and departments to ensure close coordination between the Department's initiatives and that of the Government as a whole.

  4. Media and Public Relations

    The Director will supervise the Public Relations and Information Unit and act as the spokesman for the Secretary for Justice on appropriate occasions. He will also represent the SJ in receiving important visitors and liaise with community leaders for seeking their views or explaining the Department's position on key issues.

  5. Departmental Administration

    On behalf of the Secretary for Justice, the Director will oversee the running of the Administration Division of the Department and in that regard be responsible for the management of the Department's financial, personnel and operational aspects. The Director will also oversee the Department's liaison with staff associations.

  6. Staff Development

    To ensure that there is continual development of professional, administrative and other supporting staff, the Director will oversee the staff training and development programmes of the Department.

  7. Other administrative duties

    The Director will convene, participate in and/or chair committees and working groups within the Department (and, as necessary, with other bureaux and departments) to assist SJ in overseeing the operations and development of the Department of Justice. Where appropriate, he will represent the SJ in committees or working groups of which she is a member or convenor.

Enclosure 3 to EC(97-98)33

Job Description of the Proposed
Deputy Director (Administration), Department of Justice

Rank :Deputy Director (Administration),
Department of Justice (D3)

Responsible to : Director of Administration and Development

Main Duties and Responsibilities :

  1. Assisting the Director of Administration and Development in forecasting, planning, budgeting, monitoring and administering financial resources.

  2. Assisting the Director of Administration and Development on strategic management issues, including -

    1. localization - formulating and implementing departmental policy, devising and administering localization schemes and monitoring progress;

    2. staff planning - staff succession plans and career development of professional and para-legal grades;

    3. office automation - identifying needs, developing and implementing office automation projects including the Information Systems Strategy Plan;

    4. allocating resources and monitoring programme activities; and

    5. staff relations and staff management issues.

  3. As Head of the Administration Sub-Division, overseeing the Departmental Administration Unit (including the General Translation Unit and the Training Unit), the Finance and Accounting Unit and the Information Technology and Resources Unit.

Enclosure 4 to EC(97-98)33

Job Description of the Proposed
Assistant Director (Development)

Rank : Administrative Officer Staff Grade " C " (D2)
Responsible to :Director of Administration and Development

Main Duties and Responsibilities :

  1. Strategies Development

    The Assistant Director will provide support to the Director in planning for the strategic development of the Department, conducting research, generating proposals and implementing agreed strategies.

  2. Coordination of New Initiatives

    The Assistant Director will provide staff support to the Secretary for Justice and the Department in undertaking new initiatives in particular where this involves inter-divisional coordination and cooperation with other departments and outside bodies.

  3. Media and Public Relations

    The Assistant Director will oversee the day-to-day running of the Public Relations and Information Unit and develop an on-going relationship with media organisations.

  4. Other Administrative Duties

    The Assistant Director will undertake other administrative duties assigned by the Secretary for Justice and the Director.