tta.
SECRET.
Copy to: B. A. Shanghai.
Sir,
Zo
GOVERNMENT HOUSE,
HONG KONG.
June 11th, 1938.
22 JUL 1958
5
In recent demi-official correspondence with
your predecessor and yourself I have suggested that the
present time may be opportune to negotiate with the
Chinese Government for the sale to the British Government
of the New Territories, the lease of which to Great
Britain will expire in 1997, or, alternatively, for an
extension of or undertaking to renew this lease at its
expiration for a considerable period. In your telegram
of May 27th you requested further information in this
connection: I now have the honour to enclose a memorandum
setting out as briefly as possible certain facts and
submissions which in my opinion prove that the retention
of most, if not all, of the leased lands is a condition
of the survival of Hong Kong as a British Colony into
the next century.
In the memorandum I have dealt only with
economic considerations: from the point of view of
defence the British-owned portion of the Colony would
be, as you are aware, quite untenable were it to be
deprived of all the contiguous mainland and the
neighbouring islands now held under lease.
With this
00096
Capy to
F.O.
w.o.
admy
1.17
B. 7.
THE RIGHT HONOURABLE
MALCOLM MACDONALD, P.C.,
M.P.,
&C.,
&C.,
&C.,