Foreign and Commonwealth Office
London SW1A 2AH
RJ F Hoare Esq Government House Hong Kong
Telephone 01-
270 2653
Your reference
нко
Mko 28411
Our reference
PJYAFH
Date
23 February 1989
(12
Dear Richard..
SIR SK TANG'S £1 MILLION GIFT TO HMG
We
1. On 10 March 1986, Sir S K Tang wrote to Sir David Akers-Jones saying that he wished to make a gift of £1 million to HMG. It would be in the form of a foundation fund from which the interest accrued was to be used for charitable purposes as HMG saw fit. accepted the gift in June 1986 (Your telnos 1377, 1746 and our telno 1069, all dated June 1986) but we have no record of any acknowledgement having been made to Sir S K Tang's letter of 10 March, nor of any subsequent correspondence between him and Government House.
2. Our Legal Advisers are now worried by the lack of written evidence involving the £1 million gift to HMG (telegrams on file hardly provide us with written evidence). What our Legal Advisers would like are as follows:
(a)
(b)
(c)
-
a copy of the Governor's or Chief Secretary's response to Sir SK Tang's letter of 10 March 1986.
a letter or copy of a letter from Lady Tang (as executor to Sir S K Tang's estate) to the effect that neither she, nor the estate, has any claims on her late husband £1 million pound gift to HMG, and
a letter from the family solicitors confirming that there is no legal hindrance, as far as Hong Kong law is concerned, to HMG's acceptance of the gift. We would also appreciate confirmation that no-mention of this gift was made in Sir S K Tang's will.
As soon as we can furnish our Legal Advisers with the papers they require they will consider our proposals for dispursing the gift (as agreed with Sir S K Tang in 1986). I should be most grateful therefore for your help in obtaining the necessary papers.
Yours eur
Peter
P J Morris
Hong Kong Department