Reference...
69
27.
Sie
(46
.69/9/1 .69/2/1,
৭//
Mr. Stewart
I attach a note of my discussion with Mr. Hobley on 26 June, with the conclusions I arrived at, and a
copy of a note I received from him on 28 idem. I have had a further discussion with him on 2 July, as
a result of which I have added a marginal note to
paragraph 7 of my note of the discussion.
2.
I understand we now have to reply to the Governor's Saving Despatch No. 211 of 10 February last. This asks for advice on a number of points and the second sentence seems to contemplate the Secretary of State's approval being given to the
form of the draft Order, but the Governor does not
expressly ask for approval to the draft Order or to
the draft Ordinance. However, you will, no doubt, wish to indicate in the reply whether the Secretary of State's approval is being given to both documents and I understand from Mr. Hobley that, in fact, the Hong Kong Government wish to have the Secretary of State's approval.
3.
My advice on whether there are any legal objections to the Secretary of State approving either document is as follows. I think that,
subject to any comments of the Board of Trade (I do not have your file on which their comments appear), there is no legal ground for objecting to the draft Order in Council. Also, I would not see any legal ground for objecting to the draft Ordinance provided section 4(2) is amended by restricting it to broadcasts made from a place in Hong Kong, as in section 4(1), and provided section 4(4) is omitted. In our discussions with Mr. Hobley and Board of Trade officials, it has been agreed that section 40(3) of the Copyright Act should be applied to Hong Kong by the Order in Council and, in my discussion with Mr. Hobley, that a provision similar to section 40(3) of the Copyright Act, but referring to the Hong Kong
broadcasting concerns in place of the B.B.C. and I.T.A., should be inserted in the Ordinance, though this might alternatively be done by modification of section 40(3) in the Order in Council.
4. We have considered whether the fact that the result of the proposed legislation might be to make it impossible for Rediffusion to exercise their right to relay broadcast material, because the
/broadcasting