HKD 30111
Ryll
Miss Marisa
기ᄀ
FROM:
DATE:
CC:
JD K Grant
News Department
4 July 1989
Mr Gillmore
Mr McLaren
Hong Kong Department
Mr Teasdale
Private Secretary
FINANCIAL TIMES: "MAN IN THE NEWS"
Mr Fraser
137
1.
Bob Mauthner of the FT telephoned this afternoon to ask whether
he could see the Foreign Secretary for about half an hour tomorrow
(Wednesday) or on Thursday. This would be for the FT's "Man in the News" column which appears on Saturdays. I attach the pieces that appeared last Saturday and the one before that.
2. Mauthner said that he would want to discuss the Foreign
Secretary's trip to Hong Kong, both on the broader policy front and
to get the Foreign Secretary's personal reaction to what he had seen
and heard there. He does not expect to raise any other particular issue. Mauthner is, of course, well known to the Foreign Secretary.
He is a perceptive but relatively honourable operator.
3. I have discussed this with Mr Teasdale. His view was that,
since the piece was likely to focus on foreign policy questions, and
might well be written anyway, it would be as well if the Foreign
Secretary could find time to see Mauthner.
4. If the Foreign Secretary wanted to do so, the problem would be
timing. Much would depend on when the statement on Hong Kong
actually starts. We will not know this until 1200 tomorrow. If the
Foreign Secretary is ready to see Mauthner, we will just have to try
to fix it up at short notice.
Jon Grant
JD K Grant