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c.c.:
CONFIDENTIAL
ava 6/2 in Germain
GVM
Mr Downing
9
даша
daicus. En.
wo like to
IMMIGRATION BILL: HONG KONG
1.
Mr Laird (Hong Kong Dent
Mr Watt (Atlantic &
Indian Ocean Dept)
Mr Posnett (W I Dept)
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Miss Emery (Pacific:
Dep Territories Dept)
Sir Leslie Monson
24/5
The Governor of Hong Kong has sent a personal telegram to Sir Leslie Monson objecting to the planned decrease under the new legislation in the number of citizens of the UK and Colonies from Hong Kong who are admitted to Britain for employment.
2.
Under the present employment voucher scheme, 600 vouchers are made available each year to the dependent territories, of which no territory may have more than 300. This qualification was inserted in the scheme to prevent applicants from Hong Kong (which is the only territory to approach the permitted maximum) taking pretty well all the vouchers (see tables in Mr Le May's minute below and at paragraph 4 of the telegram under reference).
3. The FCO view, which was put forward at an early stage of the inter-Departmental discussions on the new immigration legislation, is that the retention of a quota for the dependent territories is justified because of the United Kingdom's special responsibilities for, and obligations towards, them. A formal paper was prepared, which proposed, among other things, the retention of the special arrangements for the dependent. territories, and circulated to the Departments represented on the Official Committee on Immigration and Community Relations. The paper was discussed at a meeting of the Committee on
8 December 1970 and afterwards Sir Stanley Tomlinson wrote to other members to give the order of priority which we attached to the recommendations in the FCO paper. It will be seen that the maintenance of a voucher quota for the dependent territories took first place - although we were coming round to accepting the probability of a reduction in numbers. Mr. Fitzgerald at the Home Office referred to the likelihood of this becoming necessary in his reply to Sir Stanley Tomlinson's letter.
4. The Cabinet met on 5 January to consider and approve the form of the new proposals, which the Home Secretary outlined in a Memorandum circulated beforehand. Ministers had earlier agreed that there should be a reduction in the level of Common- wealth immigration under the new legislation (to 2,000 permit holders) to permit the planned increase in the admission rate of United Kingdom Passport Holders to be accommodated. In his Memorandum, the Home Secretary suggested that half of the future voucher ceiling should be allocated to the dependent territories and Malta, with 400 going to the territories (of which no one would have more than 200) and 600 to Malta. Faced with a material reduction overall in the level of Commonwealth immigration, we recognised that it would be difficult to justify a bid for more than half for these territories in which we were particularly interested, and the Secretary of State was briefed accordingly. In the event, this particular aspect was not
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CONFIDENTIAL