A PRIVATE member's bill seeking a six-month freeze on government plans to allow overseas contract staff to switch to local terms may have to be extended - because of difficulty in finding an acceptable definition of the term ''local'', according to an internal official assessment.
Legislators will today discuss details of the bill, which is sponsored by Tam Yiu-chung. Government officials are expected to argue that passage of the bill would bring about a host of problems and create a climate of uncertainly for the administration and staff.
''The uncertainty could continue for a considerable time if the bill is renewed or extended at the end of six months,'' a source said.
Even though it secured majority support in the legislature, some legislators are worried that the bill would create more uncertainty for expatriate officers.
The bill was supported by both the United Democrats and the Liberal Party, with both parties saying the Government should freeze its interim measure of allowing expatriate officers to switch to local terms and seek a long-term agreement acceptable to allsides.
According to the Government's assessment, if the bill was enacted, more local staff would have their chances of promotion blocked than would be the case under the Government's interim measure of allowing overseas staff to switch to local terms.