CONFIDENTIAL
SECRETARY OF STATE'S TALK WITH THE HOME SECRETARY ABOUT THE APPROVED
SECONDMENT SCHEME FOR HONG KONG: 8 MARCH 1990
Points to make
(a)
Responsibility for administering the Scheme.
No reason in principle why applications under the Approved
Secondments Scheme (ASS) could not be dealt with in exactly the same
way as those under the main Scheme (ie on the recommendation of the
Governor).
Governor would however be reluctant to do this unless he
could base his recommendations on objective criteria related to
value of the companies concerned to Hong Kong (eg annual turnover,
contribution to Hong Kong's exports, number of employees, etc).
Understand that it had always been envisaged (until recent
weeks) that this would be the case.
(b) Possibility of an ASS without the need for legislation
Understand that primary legislation would be needed for an
ASS which provided for citizenship (because it would involve
fundamental change to the residence principle enshrined in the BNA
so?
1981). Is this really
But it would presumably be possible to devise an ASS which
operated under the Immigration Rules, in which the prize was an
Entry Certificate, rather than full citizenship. (but very much Second best, and may not satisly the companies)]
BATACD
CONFIDENTIAL