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Mr Morrice
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Reference
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RECEIVED IN REGISTRY NO. 51 1 6 JAN 1981
DESK OFFICER
INDEX
REGISTRY Action Taken
F
Mr Williamson
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PA
Zibila
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BRITISH NATIONALITY LEGISLATION: HONG KONG LOCALLY-ENGAGED
ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICERS
1.
Please prepare a draft reply to the Governor's letter of 30 December 1980. You will need to consult NTD and the Legal Advisers.
At first reading, I see several difficulties about the Governor's proposals:
2.
3.
a) Nature of assurance. This is not specified in Paragraph 9.
It is, however, unlikely that any private communication to the Administrative Officers would remain confidential. The risks of damaged confidence (on grounds that we were preparing for a Chinese takeover), to which the Governor himself refers in paragraph 7, are therefore considerable.
b) Substance of communication to the Administrative Officers.
Although ostensibly couched in negative phraseology, the formula outlined in Paragraph 9 seems to me to be susceptible to only one interpretation:
that HMG would
give favourable consideration to the claims of Hong Kong Government servants for the purpose of a grant of British citizenship if the need should arise. I am sure that it would be quoted back to us in these terms.
c) As the letter makes clear, the numbers of people likely to
be affected (who would certainly hear of the assurance to the Administrative Officers) are much greater than the group which have initially raised the problem with the Hong Kong Government. This makes even a negative under- taking even more difficult.
Of course we know that, if a change of status occurs in Hong Kong that the position of Government servants, particularly those in positions of trust, responsibility or sensitive occupations, will be one of our greatest headaches. It may be that when the time comes it will be necessary to make special arrangements, including the
But I do not see grant of citizenship, to some of these people. how we can even imply now that we would do so.
4.
The reply should cover the following points:
i) The exact purpose and intent of Paragraph 70 of the White
Paper (as transferred to the Bill);
I do
ii) A commentary on the assurance given by Lord Shepherd.
not think that this necessarily amounts to an undertaking in the context of nationality (since those concerned were CUKCS at the time);
iii) Our views on the proposal in Paragraph 9 of the Governor's
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letter;
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