1. Gov. Sever
27·2·29 Z
Submits proposals for affroval,
regarding grant of land
New Terrinies
This is rather disappoint ing. To repeat
once again the issues in the matter, the position
is that, in order to secure the proper economic
development of the New Territories, it is essential
that persons desirous of settling there or
establishing businesses should have security of
tenure. The normal lease in Hong Kong is
75 years but if leases of this length are granted in the New Territories they will extend beyond the
period when our own lease expires, that is in 1997.
There are two obvious alternative solutions:-
(1) To ignore merely legal considerations
and grant leases for 75 years on the ground that this is the only practical business-like method
of dealing with the land.
(2) To grant leases expiring with our own lease so that the term of the leases granted will automatically diminish as the years go on.
The first solution was that originally suggested by Sir C. Clementi and supported by
this Office. The Foreign Office, however, made
it quite clear in their letter No.1 on 52723 and
in the discussions which followed, that they could not agree, as any such action would amount
be in refere
as
to a declaration that we had no intention of
returning the leased territory to China when the lease expired, and when the Chinese heard of it, as they would sooner or later, there would be a tremendous agitation against us.
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