CONFIDENTIAL
1162,
See 1156
Mr GKft
cc:
PS/LPS
Mr Giffard
Mr Elliott
Hrre
04011
FUTURE OF HONG KONG
in
AG415
км
Mr Killimon The spoke. We ond
a) send copies to the Governmen
(under a letter)
b) submit reply to hd. Shepheut litter ĥ LPS.
Pl.dp.
1. Lord Shepherd telephoned me yesterday afternoon. He
explained that he had accepted advice from the Lord Privy Seal about dealing with Mr Fung King-hey. The gist of this was
that it was important to avoid raising expectations in Hong
Kong about the Prime Minister's visit to China. While it was
important to avoid getting involved in issues of substance, it
was quite right for Chinese businessmen like Mr Fung to
remind the Chinese of the need for confidence in Hong Kong and
to explain the technical workings of the Hong Kong market. Lord Shepherd said that he had dutifully dampened down Mr Fung's ardour and got his additional co-operation.
2. He was however somewhat embarrassed to have been told by
Mr Fung of recent statements made by British MPs in Hong Kong about the future. These related to a Parliamentary delegation led by Mr Edward Du Cann (along with colleagues such as
Mr Ray Whitney, Mr Bottomley and Mr Willey) which had just
passed through Hong Kong on a visit to China. According to
Mr Fung's report, the MPs had said that the British had been
negotiating for three years with the Chinese about the future
of Hong Kong and that the Chinese were ready to have immediate
talks.
See (192)
271
3. I said to Lord Shepherd that the Lord Privy Seal's advice
still held. It was typical that stories spread from time to
time in Hong Kong. The kind of remarks attributed to the MPs
were just the kind of thing that increased expectations that
the Prime Minister would solve the question of the future of Hong Kong at one blow. It was right therefore to keep Mr Fung
on an even keel.
CONFIDENTIAL
/Lord Shepherd