CONFIDENTIAL AND STRICTLY PERSONAL
HKB 010/4
RECE
INL..
2
GISTRY
1993
PA
REGISTRY Action Taken
PS/Mr Goodlad
Passe Papers
From:
Sir John Coles
Date:
18 August 1993
CC:
G now all
Po d
SIR PERCY CRADOCK'S MEMOIRS
31
PS/PUS (for PUS o/r)
Mr Hum o/r
Mr Ricketts, HKD
Mr Marr's
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der Ricketts,
Attach Below.
19/8
I'd like to fee He rented
text, pa
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219/8
1.
matters
2.
The Minister of State may wish to know where stand.
As Mr Goodlad knows, the Cabinet Secretary and I saw Sir Percy Cradock on 2 July. We maintained the line that Sir Percy should either postpone publication until the current negotiations were over or should publish without the two concluding chapters (which covered negotiations on the airport and his criticism of the policy adopted since Mr Patten's appointment). We made plain that our concerns were that (a) his revelations of past confidential negotiations could inhibit our ability to conduct confidential negotiations with the Chinese in the future and (b) his criticism of current policy could weaken our negotiating position by implying that there were divided counsels within HMG. The Cabinet Secretary explained that in accordance with the Radcliffe rules a former Minister or official should defer to the judgement of those currently exercising responsibility. For a Privy Councillor to defy the Government's view would be very damaging, both in itself and as a precedent.
3.
Sir Percy Cradock gave no ground at that meeting but on 20 July sent to the Cabinet Secretary a revised text of the two chapters. He explained that he was not making a definite offer to change the original but wanted to explore the possibility of whether by changing the text he could persuade us to withdraw our objection to publication.
CONFIDENTIAL AND STRICTLY PERSONAL
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