written confirmation to the Hong Kong authorities that they are content for the latter to implement the CMUS; however, your colleagues in IAD, or my colleagues in AMD and HKD, may take a different view.
It seems to me that the only reason why we in the UK might wish to confirm to Hong Kong that we are content that they should implement the CMUS would be if we wished to show some such document to the Chinese, or if we wished to establish some precedent which might be useful after 1997; the second paragraph on the second page of your letter suggests that the latter may be the case. On the other hand, I am not sure that we need actually to show the Chinese anything; can we not simply tell them at the appropriate time that we have authorised Hong Kong to implement the CMUS on an administrative basis? In the event that you do feel that some document from the UK to the Hong Kong authorities would be useful, I would have thought, subject to the views of IAD, AMD and HKD, that the most sensible arrangement would be for a letter to go from someone in IAD (perhaps Michael Fielder) to his opposite number in the Hong Kong Government.
5.
I am copying to Moragh Stewart (IAD, DTP), Simon Shelly (AMD, FCO) and Rod Bunten (HKD, FCO).
Yours ever,
Chris.
CA Whomersley Legal Advisers
CW1AHU