CONFIDENTIAL
RECEIVED IN
REGISTRY No. 51 200EC1971
HKKG/500/3
In clesty
153 P.A 1/12.
Ans Lahead of
12.
Mr Keeble
Sir Leslie Monson
Mr Royle
COTTON TEXTILES: HONG KONG
19 xii
162
со
B
to
C
PROBLEM
1. To reply to Sir John Eden's letter of 10 December to
Mr Royle.
ARGUMENT
2. Sir John Eden's letter, as with other letters from
officials in the DTI, stresses the difficulty of making concessions to Hong Kong when the talks with the Colony resume
in January.
However it is essential that we should be able
to demonstrate at the resumed talks that we have approached them seriously and in a meaningful way and that if we are unable to accommodate Hong Kong we can factually show why the acceptance of Hong Kong's proposals would seriously damage the
Government's new policy on cotton textiles. The need to fully
expose our hand is heightened by the telegram sent on
7 December by the various Hong Kong associations to the
"Minister of Trade and Industry" and the statement issued on
9 December by the Chairman of the Hong Kong General Chamber of
Commerce.
RECOMMENDATION
3.
I therefore submit the draft of a letter (the broad lines
of which have been agreed with Mr Wilford and Mr Laird) which
I RECOMMEND that Mr Royle send to Sir John Eden,
"H. E. J.
1. KALE
/cc
16 December 1971