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discretion under the LP to reserve the Bill for decision in
London (a Bill so reserved lapses after two years unless HMG
indicates agreement before that). That would leave responsibility where it ultimately lies, with the sovereign power, and while uncomfortable for HMG would probably be less damaging overall.
Option B: Amending the LP to oblige the Governor to reserve any Bill amending LegCo's constitution for decision in London. An amendment on these lines would be a show of
determination by HMG to maintain political control of LegCo. It would accordingly win marks in Peking and lose them in Hong Kong. It would provide legal certainty: no-one disputes our right to amend LP. But timing would be a problem. If we made an amendment before an actual problem arose in Hong Kong, we would be stoking up a political storm, perhaps unnecessarily. If we waited until a challenge by LegCo there could be a scramble to get an amendment through. We understand that once the ground work has been done, the process of amending the LP could probably be completed within 4-6 week period which the Governor thinks would be available. But it could be tight.
11. As the Governor requested, we have also looked at the option of making an amendment to the LP but not publishing
it until or Unless required. This does not seem a runner. Amendments have to be passed to the Public Records Office at the end of the regnal year in which they were signed (ie on 6 February). So an amendment would become public within a year at the latest, and could leak before then. If we decided to go down the amendment route, it would therefore be better to prepare the text of an amendment but not enact it unless we were sure that it was required.
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