says in his speech, he is consulting with us
on the many and complicated recommendations of
the report on corruption by a judge of the
Hong Kong High Court. It is the Governor's
intention that his proposals for action on
these recommendations should be announced during
the motion of thanks in reply to his address
in Legislative Council on 14 November.
Your constituent's sister is right in stating
that English common law forms the basis of the
Hong Kong legal system, with certain modifi-
cations by local ordinances to take account of
the special requirements of the colony and of
Chinese custom. The word "omit" must, I think
be a misprint. It was precisely such a
modification to take account of the special
circumstances of Hong Kong which explains the
discrepancy between the United Kingdom and
Hong Kong law that prevents the return of
Mr Godber to Hong Kong at the present. The
UK Fugitive Offenders Act, which governs such
returns, provides that an accused person can
only be returned from this country to a
dependent territory when the offence of which
he is accused is known to the law of both
countries. The Prevention of Bribery Ordinance
which was introduced in Hong Kong in 1970
embodied some very stringent provisions which
have no counterpart in English law. However, the Government
HMG accepted that in the particular circum-
stances of Hong Kong these provisions of the
/Ordinance
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