E.R.
CONFIDENTIAL
On
Governments in proportion to the costs incurred by them. this approach, presumably, the consent of the Treasury would be required for fees.
Whether or not the Secretary of State or the Treasury are to have a statutory role in fee setting under the Bill, it would be helpful to have any advice you can offer on the fee structure. HKG envisage a non-refundable fee for all applicants (currently estimated at £10) and an additional fee for registration as a British citizen. Would you normally, in
UK terms, be pressing for these two fees to reflect the economic costs of the stages to which they relate? The main part of the costs would probably arise during the initial stage of processing applications and identifying those which clearly fall below the line, so this approach would mean making the application fee carry the lion's share of the total costs. The registration fee would cover the cost of interviewing and checking out the 50,000 successful applicants and issuing them with registration certificates. approach, also, there would be separate, lower fees for dependants reflecting the fact that their applications will involve much less work.
Alternatively, would there be scope on policy grounds for making unsuccessful applicants subsidise successful ones (eg in order to deter hopeless applications and thereby keep down the numbers) or vice versa (eg so that the scheme is seen to be accessible to all)?
I am copying this to Liz Grimsey and Jeremy Page, who will ask the Hong Kong Government for advice about the Governor's fee- setting powers under Hong Kong law when they visit Hong Kong next week. Copies also go to Bob Morris, David Seymour (our legal adviser on the Bill), Ian Chisholm, Graham Sandiford and Brian Bishop in the Home Office; and John Morris in the Hong Kong Department of the FCO.
Your Simsekly
Godfrey Hallen
GN STADLEN
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