HS Lee Esq HM Treasury London SW1
CONFIDENTIAL
36
AMP 77/218/01
24 February 1971
35
اسا
።።
(3)
(38
This is in continuation of my letter of 23 February about assistance to the technical institutes in Hong Kong.
2. I now enclose a copy of a telegram received from Hong Kong in reply to the FCO telegram No 115 enclosed with my previous letter. From this you will see that there is some argument about just what equipment our aid should be spent on. I understand that Mr Royle proposes to put some pressure on the Governor to proceed with the technical institutes and to use the aid in the way originally proposed. Whatever the upshot of this may be it does not affect the Foreign Secretary's decision to make available the £400,000 over a period of years for equipment to be used in technical education.
The FCO Ministers continue to attach great importance to the rapid expansion of the technical institutes on which the future of the Hong Kong economy is to a large extent dependent. They wish to use this grant to press the Government of Hong Kong in this direction. There are also, as I have said, important trade advantages for the UK in the long term.
I have copied this letter to Laird in the FCO.
J M Kisch
ENC
CONFIDENTIAL