CTWAFJ (4)
CONFIDENTIAL
HONG KONG: CITIZENSHIP FOR HONG KONG BUSINESSMEN
References: A: Mr Powell's letter of 20 December 1988
B: Mr Hurd's letter of 25 January, enclosing draft notes
C: Mr Powell's letter of 22 February, recording details
of the Governor's call on the Prime Minister
Background
1.
We understand from Sir P Cradock that at a recent meeting
with the Prime Minister, Lord Carrington raised the question of
passports for Hong Kong businessmen. We are not aware that Lord
Carrington has previously shown any interest in this subject.
2. Lord Carrington's intervention is the latest in a series of such
approaches from a wide variety of people including Lord Young, Lord
Wyatt, Lord Fanshawe, Lord Chalfont and Mr Keswick. It is likely to confirm the Prime Minister in her view, recently expressed to the
Governor of Hong Kong, that we should do more to attract
enterprising Hong Kong people to the UK. The Prime Minister
apparently quoted to the Governor Lord Carrington's view (also advanced by others) that even if Hong Kong businessmen were granted British passports most of them would not actually come here.
3.
This issue will be debated in the House of Lords on 14 March.
Lord Wyatt has tabled an Unstarred Question asking HMG "whether they will reconsider their policy on the issue of British passports to
British citizens".
4.
Under current arrangements, businessmen can be granted entry for settlement purposes if they invest £150,000 in a way which creates two new jobs. Settled status is granted after four years residence and citizenship after five, but the Home Secretary has considerable discretion to allow absences during the qualifying period.
CONFIDENTIAL
Hong Kong Department
6 March 1989
BACKGROUND