Registry No.
| SECURITY CLASSIFICATION
Top Secret.
DRAFT
Type 1 +
From
Secret.
Confidential.
Private Secretary to
r Royle
Telephone No. & Ext.
Restricted. Unclassified.
PRIVACY MARKING
A
.In Confidence
HKD
By 1/2 18. Sumer
C
Mr. Logan.
Department
HONG KONG TRADE UNION REGISTRATION (AMENDMENT) BILL
On 4 December 1970, Mr Victor Feather of the
TUC wrote to the Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary to
convey the objections of the TUC to the Hong Kong Bill.
On 23 December, Mr Royle replied, informing Mr.Feather
that certain of the provisions had been dropped from
the proposed Bill and that it would be difficult to
hold up further progress of the Bill. On 31 December
Mr Feather wrote again to say that the changes made
were largely subsidiary and the TUC's main objections
remained unchanged. Mr Royle has asked for details
of these objections.
are comirmed with work
2. The main objections of the TUC both to the
Trade Union Registration Ordinance and the amending
and are
Bill, remain as follows:-
(i) The corporate status of trade unions
(section 13 of the principal Ordinance)
which is seen by the TUC as the basis for
making unions liable to legal proceedings,
including criminal prosecutions and for the
depletion of their funds by payment of fines.
(ii) Removal of the legal protection for the
peaceful picketing of private houses
(Clause 23 of the Bill) and the alleged
failure to afford pickets reasonable access
able
to workers for the communication of informa-
tion.
1
(134392) Dd. 737115 750M 4/70 Hw.
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