vessels are registered, manned and inspected.
Acceding to Hong Kong
Eve
pressures on officering would make it more difficult to resist demands from
Bermuda, and possibly other territories, for a similar relaxation.
more important, any relaxation of the British link in respect of Hong Ko
would make it far harder to protect the British flag generally from the
charge that its relatively liberal conditions of registration make it a
flag of convenience, a charge which if successfully sustained in UNCTAD
would damage Hong Kong and the other "sub-registers" as well as the UK
itself. UK shipowners, including those who own tonnage in Hong Kong az
part of the general British connection, would not welcome the creation o
a separate register and the seaman's unions could also be expected to be
hostile. Finally, a separate Hong Kong register could prejudice mariti.
relations with China, including the chances of reaching a Maritime Agree
ment. Although earlier negotiations on this broke down over China's
unwillingness to extend the benefits of the Agreement to Hong Kong state.
vessels registered in Hong Kong, there have lately been signs that she
could now be more accommodating. Any dilution of the British link couli
make the position more difficult again.
7. The foregoing is written on the assumption that Sir Y K Pao is seek.
not freedom to employ officers with any certification but freedom to
employ officers who would still meet British standards in terms of
qualifications, skills and experience. If this assumption is dropped,
that is, if British standards are not to be maintained, the
resultant fall in standards is a powerful argument reinforcing
the economic arguments against the separate register. But even
if officers standards were to be maintained, there must surely be
doubt about Hong Kong's ability to meet standards in other`
areas. For example, although there is a localisation policy in employ
surveyors, the nautical surveyors used are still British, half of the
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