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Foreign and Commonwealth Office
London SW1A 2AH
FAC fil
раск
Telephone 01-
Your reference
Dr J E Hoare
British Trade Commission
HKB 011/3
Our reference
2 March 1989
PEKING
Date
PUL 012/4.
NEOL
Dear Dr Hoare
FAC INQUIRY INTO HONG KONG
1.
105
Further to my telegram No. 65 to BTC HK. repeated to you, I now enclose:
(i)
a copy of Guidance Notes on Parliamentary Select Committees: Visits Overseas;
(ii) as above: Administrative and Programme Arrangements;
(iii) Private Secretary's circular 'o' 6/87.
2. It is important that those responsible for the organisation of the programme, and who will come into contact with the Committee, should be conversant with the contents of the above documents and be familiar with DSP Volume 5 Chapters 8 and 9.
3.
You will probably be aware of the considerable importance in terms of our relations with Parliamentarians which Ministers and the PUS attach to Select Committee visits abroad and especially to those of the FAC. In this connection it should be noted that Members tend to judge the Mission, and hence the Diplomatic Service as a whole, not only by their reception and programme arrangements but also by the response of the Mission to their requests for information (see paragraph 5 of
(i) above). It is important that an experienced member of staff should generally keep a close eye on all arrangements relating to the visit; he should be among those meeting the Committee on arrival and should normally accompany them throughout their visit. General attention and assistance to the Committee should be given at a senior level.
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