Parliamentary Unit
cc:
Mr Donald
CONFIDENTIAL
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ник
02012
28 JUNTSA
174.
See
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19E
No
29/6 proztll
PQ : HONG KONG SEAMEN KILLED IN THE SOUTH ATLANTIC
86
1.
I submit a draft reply to a PQ from Sir Anthony Royle MP.
It was put down for oral reply but will not be reached;
supplementaries are therefore not needed. The draft has been
cleared with the Ministry of Defence and the Governor.
73
2.
Sir Anthony Royle has taken a keen and sympathetic
interest in Hong Kong since he became Under Secretary of State
for the Colonies in 1960.
3.
There are some 500 Hong Kong Chinese seamen employed in
Royal Fleet Auxillary (RFA) vessels on contract to the Ministry
of Defence and a smaller number of Hong Kong Chinese laundrymen,
on Royal Naval vessels. The latter are not employed by the
Navy but are paid direct by naval personnel.
Six of these seamen
including 2 laundrymen were killed in the South Atlantic.
4.
The draft answer refers to 'death gratuities' and
'insurance indemnities'.
The former are the sums payable under
the RFA contracts to the families of those who are killed. In
the case of the laundrymen no gratuities are payable but the
Ministry of Defence indemnifies the insurers against their
liabilities because of a War risk clause in their policies.
/5.
CONFIDENTIAL