Government Secretariat (Hong Kong)

The Government Secretariat (Chinese: 政府總部; known as 布政司署 before 1997) is collectively formed by the Offices of the Chief Secretary and the Financial Secretary and thirteen policy bureaux.

The offices are officially known as "Government Secretariat: Offices of the Chief Secretary for Administration and the Financial Secretary", and the bureaux are officially known as "[Portfolio] Bureau, Government Secretariat" or "Government Secretariat: [Portfolio] Bureau".

Chart[edit]

Dept \ Year	'73	'74	'76	'81	'82	'83	'85	'89	'93	'94	'98	'00	'02	'07	'15	'22
Education	Social Services					Education and Manpower							Education and Manpower	Education
Labour						Education and Manpower							Economic Development and Labour	Labour and Welfare
Welfare						Health and Welfare							Health, Welfare and Food	Labour and Welfare
Health						Health and Welfare								Food and Health		Health
Food, Hygiene	Urban Council & Regional Council (not Government departments)											Environment and Food		Food and Health		Environment and Ecology
Environment	Environment			Lands and Works				Planning, Environment and Lands				Environment and Food	Environment, Transport and Works	Environment		Environment and Ecology
Lands								Planning, Environment and Lands				Planning and Lands	Housing, Planning and Lands	Development
Works								Public Works					Environment, Transport and Works	Development
Transport				Transport									Environment, Transport and Works	Transport and Housing		Transport and Logistics
Housing	Housing							Home Affairs		Housing			Housing, Planning and Lands	Transport and Housing		Housing
Technology											Information Technology and Broadcasting		Commerce, Industry and Technology	Commerce and Economic Development	Innovation and Technology	Innovation, Technology and Industry
Industry					Trade and Industry							Commerce and Industry		Commerce and Economic Development		Innovation, Technology and Industry
Business					Trade and Industry							Commerce and Industry				Commerce and Economic Development
Broadcast	Home Affairs							Broadcasting, Culture and Sport			Information Technology and Broadcasting
Economy	Economic Services												Economic Development and Labour
Tourism	Home Affairs												Economic Development and Labour			Culture, Sports and Tourism
Culture, Sports	Urban Council & Regional Council						Municipal Services	Broadcasting, Culture and Sport			Home Affairs					Culture, Sports and Tourism
Home affairs	Home Affairs						District Administration	Home Affairs								Home and Youth Affairs
Local admin.	Home Affairs	New Territories Administration		City and New Territories Administration		District Administration		Home Affairs								Home and Youth Affairs
Finance			Monetary Affairs						Financial Services				Financial Services and the Treasury
Treasury	Dep. Financial Sec.							Treasury					Financial Services and the Treasury
Constitution							Dep. Chief Sec.	Constitutional Affairs						Constitutional and Mainland Affairs
Security	Security
Civil service	Civil Service

History[edit]

The structure of the Government Secretariat has undergone periodic changes.

The McKinsey Report[edit]

Governor Sir Murray MacLehose commissioned McKinsey & Company to conduct a study on the structure of the Hong Kong Government. Sir MacLehose subsequently restructured the Government Secretariat pursuant to recommendations in the McKinsey Report in 1973.

Branches of the Government Secretariat under the Colonial Secretary:

Environment Branch (-1981)
Home Affairs Branch
Social Services Branch
Housing Branch
Security Branch
Civil Service Branch
New Territories Branch (1974-)
Administration Branch (1975-1978)

Branches of the Government Secretariat under the Financial Secretary:

Financial Branch (-1976); replaced by the Monetary Affairs Branch (1976-)
Economic Services Branch

Reorganisation in the 1980s[edit]

New branches of the Government Secretariat were established in the 1980s.

Branches of the Government Secretariat under the Chief Secretary:

Environment Branch (-1981)
Home Affairs Branch
Social Services Branch (-1983); replaced by the Health & Welfare Branch (1983-)
Housing Branch
Security Branch
Civil Service Branch
New Territories Branch (-1981); replaced by the City & N.T. Administration Branch (1981-1983) and renamed the District Administration Branch (1983-)
News Branch (1979-1981)
Education Branch (1980-1983); renamed the Education & Manpower Branch (1983-)
Transport Branch (1981-)
Lands & Works Branch (1981-)
General Duties Branch (1982-)
Municipal Services Branch (1985-)

Branches of the Government Secretariat under the Financial Secretary:

Economic Services Branch
Monetary Affairs Branch (1976-)
Trade & industry Branch (1982-)

1989 reorganisation[edit]

In the 1 September 1989 reorganisation, the Recreation and Culture Branch (RCB) was created, taking on some duties from the Municipal Services Branch, such as for culture and recreation, sports, antiquities and country parks management, and others from the Administrative Services and Information Branch, including broadcasting, entertainment and censorship policy. Both branches then ceased to exist.^[1] The RCB operated as a Broadcasting, Entertainment and Administration wing, which covered RTHK and TELA, and the Recreation and Culture wing, with responsibilities including sport.^[2]

Branches of the Government Secretariat under the Chief Secretary:

General Duties Branch (-1990)
Constitutional Affairs Branch
Education & Manpower Branch
Civil Service Branch
Home Affairs Branch
Planning, Environment & Lands Branch
Broadcasting, Culture & Sports Branch
Security Branch
Health & Welfare Branch
Transport Branch
Housing Branch (1994-)

Branches of the Government Secretariat under the Financial Secretary:

Finance Branch
Works Branch
Economic Services Branch
Monetary Affairs Branch (-1993); replaced by the Financial Services Branch (1993-)
Trade & industry Branch

Structure of the Government Secretariat, 1997-2002[edit]

Branches of the Government Secretariat under the Chief Secretary for Administration:

Education Bureau
Constitutional Affairs Bureau
Civil Service Bureau
Home Affairs Bureau
Planning, Environment and Lands Bureau (1997–99); renamed the Planning and Lands Bureau (2000-)
Environment and Food Bureau (2000-)
Housing Bureau
Security Bureau
Health and Welfare Bureau
Transport Bureau

Bureaux under the Financial Secretary:

Broadcasting, Culture and Sports Bureau (1997–98)
Information Technology and Broadcast Bureau (1998-)
Works Bureau
Economic Services Bureau
Finance Bureau
Financial Services Bureau
Trade and Industry Bureau

Structure of policy bureaux, 2002-2007[edit]

The Government Secretariat was reorganised in Tung Chee-hwa's second term upon the implementation of the Principal Officials Accountability System on 1 July 2002:

Civil Service Bureau
Commerce, Industry and Technology Bureau
Constitutional Affairs Bureau
Economic Development and Labour Bureau
Education and Manpower Bureau
Environment, Transport and Works Bureau
Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau
Health, Welfare and Food Bureau
Home Affairs Bureau
Housing, Planning and Lands Bureau
Security Bureau

Structure of policy bureaux, 2007-2022[edit]

A reorganisation of the secretariat was announced by Donald Tsang after his re-election as Chief Executive in 2007. The number of policy bureaux was increased from 11 to 12 as a consequence of this re-organisation; minor adjustments were also made to the responsibilities of the principal officials. Then-Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying established the Innovation and Technology Bureau in 2015.

Bureaux under the Chief Secretary for Administration:

Bureaux under the Financial Secretary:

Present Structure of the Government Secretariat, 2022-[edit]

Pursuant to the 2021 Policy address, Carrie Lam announced a government restructuring proposal in January 2022 to be considered and implemented by the Chief Executive-elect returned by the 2022 Chief Executive election. The proposal was adopted by Chief Executive-elect John Lee Ka-chiu; requisite funding was approved by the Finance Committee of the Legislative Council on 10 June 2022.^[3]

Bureaux under the Chief Secretary for Administration:

Bureaux under the Financial Secretary:

Reorganisation Proposals[edit]

2012 Proposal[edit]

In April 2012, Chief Executive-elect Leung Chun-ying announced his plan to reform the government, "aimed at providing better service to the public while boosting governance".^[4] Under the plan, two more deputy secretaries are to be created – a new deputy chief secretary and deputy financial secretary – to join the chief secretary, financial secretary, and secretary for justice.^[5] Leung announced his desire to create a Culture Bureau; Housing and Transport would be split into two bureaux and Housing would merge with Lands and planning.^[5] The newly created Deputy chief secretary position will be responsible for the Labour and Welfare, Education and cultural affairs bureaux. The Chief Secretary is to oversee the environment, Food and health, Home affairs, Security, Civil service, and Constitutional and mainland affairs. The Financial Secretary is to oversee Housing, planning and lands, Works, Transport and Financial Services and the treasury bureaux. The Deputy financial secretary will be in overall charge of the Commerce, industrial and tourism, as well as the Information and technology bureaux.^[6] To allow for a smooth transition, the government agreed to table Leung's restructuring plan before LegCo before it dissolved for the summer. However, Pan Democrats believed careful scrutiny was necessary, and strongly opposed the plan to rush through the changes; People Power representatives in Legco warned they would table some 900 motions at the Finance Committee meeting on 15 June and over 100 amendments at the plenary council meeting on 20 June.^[5]

Bureaux under the Chief Secretary for Administration:

Civil Service Bureau
Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau
Environment Bureau
Food and Health Bureau
Home Affairs Bureau
Security Bureau

Bureaux under the Deputy Chief Secretary for Administration:

Education Bureau
Labour and Welfare Bureau
Culture Bureau

Bureaux under the Financial Secretary:

Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau
Housing, Planning and Lands Bureau
Transport and Works Bureau

Bureaux under the Deputy Financial Secretary:

Commerce and Industries Bureau
Technology and Communication Bureau

References[edit]

^ Legco Report of Proceedings, 19 July 1989
^ Finance Committee - Establishment Subcommitee (Papers) 14 Feb 96
^ "Legco finance committee passes funding for John Lee's restructure plan". 10 June 2022. Retrieved 11 June 2022.
^ Siu, Phila (24 May 2012). "Time for new filibuster row as Leung 'turns back clock'" Archived 6 October 2014 at the Wayback Machine . The Standard
^ ^a ^b ^c Lee, Colleen; So, Peter; Ng, Kang-chung (8 June 2012). "'Business as usual' for CY if the plan fails". South China Morning Post
^ Mary Ma, (27 April 2012) "Top choice closing in" Archived 7 January 2013 at archive.today. The Standard

External links[edit]

Re-organisation of Policy Bureaux of the Government Secretariat

[1] Legco Report of Proceedings, 19 July 1989

[2] Finance Committee - Establishment Subcommitee (Papers) 14 Feb 96

[3] "Legco finance committee passes funding for John Lee's restructure plan". 10 June 2022. Retrieved 11 June 2022.

[4] Siu, Phila (24 May 2012). "Time for new filibuster row as Leung 'turns back clock'" Archived 6 October 2014 at the Wayback Machine . The Standard

[scmp20120608colleen-5] Lee, Colleen; So, Peter; Ng, Kang-chung (8 June 2012). "'Business as usual' for CY if the plan fails". South China Morning Post

[6] Mary Ma, (27 April 2012) "Top choice closing in" Archived 7 January 2013 at archive.today. The Standard

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[6]

v t e Policy bureaux of the Hong Kong Government
Government Secretariat
Current bureaux	Civil Service Commerce and Economic Development Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Culture, Sports and Tourism Development Education Environment and Ecology Financial Services and the Treasury Home and Youth Affairs Housing Innovation, Technology and Industry Labour and Welfare Health Security Transport and Logistics
Previous bureaux (after 1997)	Broadcasting, Culture and Sport Commerce and Industry Commerce, Industry and Technology Constitutional Affairs Economic Services Economic Development and Labour Education and Manpower Environment and Food Environment, Transport and Works Finance Health and Welfare Health, Welfare and Food Housing, Planning and Lands Home Affairs Information Technology and Broadcasting Planning, Environment and Lands Planning and Lands Trade and Industry Transport Works Transport and Housing Food and Health Innovation and Technology

v t e Government of Hong Kong
Executive Council Government Secretariat Government agencies
Bureaus	Civil Service Commerce and Economic Development Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Development Education Environment and Ecology Financial Services and the Treasury Health Home and Youth Affairs Innovation, Technology and Industry Justice Labour and Welfare Security Transport and Logistics Housing Culture, Sports and Tourism
Departments	Administration Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Architectural Services Buildings Census and Statistics Civil Aviation Civil Engineering and Development Communications Companies Registry Correctional Services Customs and Excise Drainage Services Efficiency Electrical and Mechanical Services Electoral Affairs Environmental Protection Financial Assistance Fire Services Food and Environmental Hygiene Government Flying Service Government Laboratory Government Logistics Government Property Government Records Service Health Highways Home Affairs Housing Immigration Information Technology Information Services Inland Revenue Innovation and Technology Intellectual Property Investment Promotion Labour Land Registry Lands Legal Aid Leisure and Cultural Services Marine Observatory Official Receiver Planning Police Post Railways Rating and Valuation Radio Television Hong Kong Social Welfare Tourism Trade and Industry Transport Treasury Water Supplies
Statutory agencies or authorities	Air Accident Investigation Authority Airport Authority Antiquities Advisory Board Antiquities and Monuments Office Audit Commission Auxiliary Medical Service Centre for Health Protection Civil Aid Service Construction Industry Council Consumer Council Centre for Food Safety Communications Authority Economic Analysis and Business Facilitation Unit Estate Agents Authority Equal Opportunities Commission Examinations and Assessment Authority Exchanges and Clearing Export Credit Insurance Corporation Heung Yee Kuk Housing Authority Housing Society Hospital Authority Independent Commission Against Corruption Insurance Authority Independent Police Complaints Council Liquor Licensing Board Office of the Ombudsman Policy Innovation and Co-ordination Office Science and Technology Parks Corporation Sales of First-hand Residential Properties Authority Securities and Futures Commission Tourism Board Town Planning Board Trade Development Council Travel Industry Authority West Kowloon Cultural District Authority Urban Renewal Authority
Central bank	Hong Kong Monetary Authority
Foreign relations	Foreign relations of Hong Kong
Statutory bodies in Hong Kong Hong Kong Civil Service Administrative Officer

Chart[edit]

History[edit]

The McKinsey Report[edit]

Reorganisation in the 1980s[edit]

1989 reorganisation[edit]

Structure of the Government Secretariat, 1997-2002[edit]

Structure of policy bureaux, 2002-2007[edit]

Structure of policy bureaux, 2007-2022[edit]

Present Structure of the Government Secretariat, 2022-[edit]

Reorganisation Proposals[edit]

2012 Proposal[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

External links[edit]