CONFIDENTIAL
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Background
3.
As the Secretary of State is aware, Dame Lydia Dunn is the
Senior Member of the Executive Council and thus the Governor's
Senior Adviser. A biographical note is attached.
4
The Governor has informed us (Hong Kong telno 2554) that
Dame Lydia Dunn will certainly be in London from 21-24 August, and
may arrive here as early as 12 August, depending on the health of
her mother. He has suggested that it would be very useful if
Dame Lydia could call on the Secretary of State while she is here.
The Secretary of State would no doubt find it helpfully informative.
And it would be valuable in Hong Kong terms if he could demonstrate
that he had taken an early opportunity to meet the Senior Member of
the Executive Council.
5.
The Governor has also explained that Dame Lydia's original
suggestion was that a group of about four ExCo and LegCo Members,
who are likely to be in London in August, might call on the
Secretary of State to put their views inter alia on the rights of
abode issue. Sir D Wilson dissuaded her from pursuing that idea.
6. But it is nevertheless clear that Dame Lydia will be keen to
rehearse the arguments (in which she personally strongly believes)
that HMG should grant right of abode to all Hong Kong BDTCs. She
will also be pressing very hard for the earliest possible
announcement of our nationality package, which is anxiously awaited
in Hong Kong.
7.
One point which the Governor does not mention, but which the
Secretary of State may wish to weigh up, is whether it would be
appropriate for him to see Dame Lydia before he saw the Governor (a
call on the latter is fixed for 1 September). If the Secretary of
State agreed to see Dame Lydia Dunn in the period 21-24 August, I would recommend that we look again at the possibility of a meeting
with the Governor earlier in the month (he will be here from
7 August).
CONFIDENTIAL