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4. IN DETAILED STATEMENTS KY YUENG SPELT OUT REASONS FOR THE SELECTION. ALTHOUGH THERE WERE INEVITABLE SUGGESTIONS FROM SOME JOURNALISTS THAT THE BRITISH WERE BEING FAVOURED THESE WERE IN A LOW KEY (AND WERE MOSTLY FROM BRITISH JOURNALISTS) AND DID NOT SEEM TO ATTRACT MUCH ATTENTION WHILE THE ANSWERS SEEM TO HAVE BEEN READILY ACCEPTED.
WE ARE FAXING TEXTS OF THE STATEMENTS MADE TO THE PRESS
CONFERENCE AND ADDITIONAL SPEAKING NOTES TO THE FCO AND DTI.
5.
6.
THE AWARD WAS ALSO ANNOUNCED IN SIMILAR TERMS WITH SIMILAR EXPLANATIONS TO THE AIRPORT CONSULATIVE COMMITTEE THIS AFTERNOON, 7 MAY. OSBORNE ATTENDED THAT AS HE HAD THE PRESS CONFERENCE.
AGAIN THE QUESTION OF FAVOURITISM TOWARDS BRITISH COMPANIES WAS
RAISED BUT ONLY IN A LOW KEY AND LESS FORCEFULLY THAN WE
EXPECTED.
I ARRANGED A PRIVATE MEETING TODAY WITH MARTIN LEE, WHO RETURNED ONLY LAST NIGHT FROM AUSTRALIA, TO GIVE HIM MORE BACKGROUND ON THE AWARD, SINCE SOME MEMBERS OF THE UNITED DEMOCRATIC GROUP HAD BEEN CRITICAL OF THE CONTRACT GOING TO A
LARGELY BRITISH GROUP WHEN THE NEWS FIRST BEGAN TO LEAK YESTERDAY. HE SEEMED VERY RECEPTIVE AND I HOPE THIS WILL HAVE DISARMED OR AT ANY RATE LESSENED CRITICISM FROM THAT QUARTER. CHE
TOLD ME HE WILL BE GOING TO LONDON AROUND 18 MAY AND HOPE TO SEE
MINISTER WHEN THERE).
8. WE HAVE HAD CONSIDERABLE MEDIA INTEREST INCLUDING CALLS FROM THE BBC AND OTHERS IN THE UK. I HAVE AGREED TO PARTICIPATE IN RTHK'S MORNING RADIO MAGAZINE PROGRAMME ON 8 MAY WHEN I WILL OF COURSE SPEAK ON BEHALF OF THE BRITISH COMPANIES. I HAVE ALSO
DISCUSSED THE AWARD AT LENGTH TODAY WITH THE EDITOR OF THE SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST, PHILIP CRAWLEY, WHO HAS AGREED TO TRY TO DO A FAVOURABLE LEADER TOMORROW 8 MAY.
HEAP
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