Registry No.
FA 243/ DRAFT
SECURITY CLASSIFICATION
Top Secret,
Secret.
Confidential.
Restricted.
Unclassified.
PRIVACY MARKING
............In Confidence
CONFIDENTIAL
Letter
Type 1 +
To:-
TG Harris Esq
Private Secretary
Department of Trade
From
J S Wall
Telephone No. Ext.
Department
LAKE
Your letter of 8 June about the letter to your
Secretary of State for Trade from the President of the
General Council of British Shipping noted that the matters
raised by Mr Ropner related to the particular issue of the
MV Roachbank.
Since you wrote the Government have agreed to accept
refugees from this vessel who are not accepted by Taiwan.
The matter should soon be resolved, therefore, although,
despite all our efforts, we have not yet ascertained how
many of the refugees will have to be admitted.
[
The Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary does not think it
would be realistic to have a tacit understanding for the
Government to be responsible for taking refugees off a
vessel if the vessel's country of first port of call refused
to accept them. Any "understanding" would soon become known,
and the result would be the same as if Ministers adhered to
the policy of the former Government.
Lord Carrington also sees great difficulty in the idea
that the Government should reimburse companies for costs
involved while diplomatic representations were made to other
countries. As we know from the Roachbank and Norse Viking
affairs, our efforts with other countries are likely to be
difficult and protracted. To do as Mr Ropner suggests would
involve an open-ended commitment.
Nevertheless, Lord Carringm
/thinks
Dd 108087 400M S&K 1/77