Treasury Chambers
Parliament Street London SW1P 3AG
Telex 262405
R E Escritt Esq
Finance Department
Telephone Direct Line 01-233
Rease
Mr. Marten
соруто Mr Marelin (NTD)
Switchboard 01-233 3000 me Hill (HK))
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Old Admiralty Building
Whitehall
London SW1
Miss Kaye (Cournlaw )) Mr. Mc Dougall (MUD))
Your reference
Our reference
ど
then return to me
"CNP 343/32
Date March 1986
༥
1966
3
Des lickerd
HONG KONG: ISSUE OF BRITISH NATIONAL (OVERSEAS) PASSPORTS
Thank you for your letter of 21 February.
I accept that it would be difficult for HMG to sustain a case for retaining the profit from the issue of BN (0) passports. Although in a strict legalistic
legalistic sense, one could argue that there is а clear distinction between the Governor acting on his own behalf and acting as an agent of the Secretary of State and therefore it does not follow that the financial benefit the Hong Kong government have become accustomed to should necessarily continue, in practice they will still issue passports and collect the fees (albeit for a different type of passport). It would be hard to justify penalising the Hong Kong government because of the Communist Chinese government's sensitivity colonialism.
There can, of course, be no question of the UK Government at any time making up the "profit" the Hong Kong government will have to
to forego because of the lower fee
be charged under the UK Consular Fees Order.
to
Yours Sincech
ват нев
B NELSON