Mr. Wilford Mr. Carter-
plspk. Mj
K on "Commercial Relations Hle Lupto
+3.0 20110
Hong Kong Commercial Policy
date de
15
MKUU 17/10
You will wish to see the attached note which Sir Arthur Snelling
has sent me. It arose out of a conversation I had with him on the
afternoon of the 10th October in which I asked him, in anticipation of
my trip to Hong Kong for the benefit of his memory on two points which
had arisen out of earlier discussion with you.
(1) Did the statement brought back by Mr. Hughes from Hong Kong
that Hong Kong had the "right" up to two years ago to conduct its own commercial negotiations but that in the last two years the Board of Trade had claimed the "right" to supervise them,
refer to a formally agreed right which had been formally
rescinded or did it simply reflect what had been practice up to two years ago and since without having been formally reduced to writing.
(2)
Whether it was true as I had gathered that he had some time ago
said that the agreed primacy of the Board of Trade in commercial
relations with foreign countries applied equally to Hong Kong's
commercial relations with foreign countries.
2.
You will see from his note that he cannot really throw any light
on the first question but that on the second he is inclined to the view that I originally expressed that we in this Office and not the Board of Trade had the last say in Hong Kong's commercial relations
with other countries.
3. I regard his note as useful briefing for my visit to Hong Kong
but I do not think any action is necessary vis-a-vis the Board of Trade
until the Governor raises the matter with us in November and we can
judge how far the influence of Mr. Hughes' "conversion" to Hong Kong views during his recent visit there has prevailed in his Department.
Wiki
7
(L. Monson)
13th October, 1969
Mt. Stewart
When
Conduel-of
I have agreed to discuss with Mr. Wolford he has read the brief we prepared for Sur L. Monsen en HK's Commercial Relations. Pps. should be b.v. next week. File below can be returned to Commodities Dept. Lore 16/10