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Following is the transcript of remarks (English portion) by the Chief Executive, Mr Donald Tsang, at a media session on civil service pay adjustment after the Executive Council meeting today (May 19):
I am aware of the public concern about the issue of civil service pay adjustment. You know that we have a set of established procedures to deal with the issue. The Civil Service Bureau will follow these procedures to listen to the views of the civil servants' associations. Then the Chief Executive in Council will take into account all relevant factors before deciding whether pay adjustments are necessary.
Pay adjustment for political appointees, on the other hand, is separate from the civil service system. That is why when the senior civil servants got a pay rise of 6.3% last year, the political appointees' salaries remained unchanged.
However, the adverse impact of the financial tsunami on the economy has gradually surfaced. My political team and I will stand shoulder to shoulder with the people of Hong Kong to ride out these difficult times. I also want to stress that whether the salaries of political appointees should be changed should not affect the established procedures for civil service pay adjustment. Thank you.
(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript.)
Ends/Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Issued at HKT 12:30
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