PERSONAL AND MANAGEMENT IN CONFIDENCE
4.
On the substance I do not think we are very far apart; I hope any differences are only matters of emphasis. The revised objectives, together with what follows, are designed to clarify what that emphasis should be. In this respect, I was encouraged by what you had to say in your letter of 13 November to Peter Ricketts, about stepping up output on trade promotion and giving better coverage especially to major projects.
Reporting
5.
I was less reassured by your doubts whether the BTC could add much to its general reporting. That is not the view from here. All your customers would welcome a greater quantity and frequency of reporting. It is good that you have begun to send regular round-ups on the project scene. But the Whitehall machine is hungry for more analysis and other comment.
6.
A good example would be in the area of your contacts with entrepreneurs, consultants and bankers. know that you and James Smith-Laittan have an excellent : range of contacts at the top end of business and finance (we have heard much praise of the way you have established yourself in Hong Kong). But we seldom get reports on what emerges from these contacts (and here I mean commercial news and views; political reporting is now fine - see para 13,
see para 13, below). I know you prefer a minimalist approach to reporting, but I am afraid that will not satisfy consumers here. The worry is that items of interest to DTI etc may be getting filtered out. A regular supply of routine reporting of such contacts would reassure DTI that they are not missing any nuggets. (At the risk of being grandmother, I have to record the view at my meeting that it is not enough to commend to us articles in the FT, however accurate they may be.)
7.
Two recent examples where the DTI felt under-informed (and which the BTC could have obviated) were the opportunities for British business in water and sewerage announced in the Governor's LegCo address; and the (bogus) suggestion by Trafalgar House that, because of problems with the Chinese, the airport bridge contract might be at risk. The first is an example of a clear export opportunity which the post should have
In the second case, followed up and reported to DTI.
the DTI were unbriefed on reactions in the British business community, and so were poorly placed to assess Trafalgar's argument. Rumour such as this in the
PERSONAL AND MANAGEMENT IN CONFIDENCE
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