THE FOLLOWING REFERENCE NUMBER
SHOULD BE QUOTED IN ANY REPLY
NO.....
2/1/020
RJ Stratton CMG
Room G65/G
FCO
Dien
Dich.
1.
CAYMAN ISLANDS
OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
HKG 025/1
GRAND CAYMAN
CAYMAN ISLANDS
15
27 February 19 8.0........
OR! DEAN, INI AD
21 MAR 1930
th
AYA
niz
No 000$25.3
AKI-
Thank you for your letter of 1 February enclosing a confidential memorandum setting out the basic policy of HMG towards the remaining British dependencies.
2. The memorandum does not go so far as paragraph 7 of the draft constitutional despatch enclosed with Patrick Duff's compliments slip dated 12 February 1979 where, as I understood the tactics proposed at the last OAG's Conference at Barbados, the intention was to oblige dependencies to opt for one alternative or the other. If a dependency declared itself not ready or willing to proceed to full independence the corollary was a review of its constitution.
3.
As the memorandum applies to the Cayman Islands the salient points as my politicians will see them are:-
Paragraph 1
The present Government has already made it clear by statement after the 1976 election that it does not wish the Cayman Islands to become independent.
This mirrors the 1972 Cayman Islands Constitution.
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 3
No further delegations are at present sought.
4.
In
Elected Members of Executive Council and of the Legislativó Assembly accordingly are unlikely to read the memorandum as requiring them to take any new initiative or to see their Constitution as in any way incompatible with the statement. election year it might generate a further statement that no constitional change is sought at this stage. But it does provide a peg for the future on which to hang proposals for constitutional change, and as I have said in my letter A/2/10 of 3 January 1980 to Patrick Duff, the appropriate time would be after the 1980 elections when, following 1976 precedent, the new House is likely to make some pronouncement on constitutional change.
5.
To reply specifically to your questions:
(a)
(b)
The policy as stated is unlikely to cause problems in the Cayman Islands.
I see no objection to wide circulation both here and in United Kingdom. I should propose to issue it as a routine policy statement received from the Secretary of State to Executive Councillors, Members of the Legislative Assembly and copied to the press without inviting any specific action upon it.
PERSONAL AND CONFIDENTIAL
/ (c)