SATURDAY, APRIL 7, 1984
VISIT TO LONDON USEFUL
—
GOVERNOR
****
SPEAKING ON HIS RETURN FROM LONDON THIS (SATURDAY) EVENING TOGETHER WITH UNOFFICIAL MEMBERS OF THE EXECUTIVE COUNCIL; THE GOVERNOR, SIR EDWARD YOUDE, SAID:
+ GOOD EVENING, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, SORRY TO BRING YOU THE AIRPORT A LITTLE EARLY. THEY WILL GIVE YOU SOME TIME OFF
LATER IN THE EVENING, I EXPECT.
+THIS WAS A SHORT BUT VERY USEFUL VISIT TO LONDON. IT WAS THE FOURTH IN THE SERIES OF CONSULTATIONS WITH MINISTERS TO WHICH BOTH THEY AND WE ATTACH GREAT IMPORTANCE.
+ AND AS YOU KNOW ON THIS OCCASION WE SAW MR LUCE, SIR GEOFFREY HOWE, AND THE PRIME MINISTER -- IN THAT ORDER. ALTHOUGH THEY HAVE VERY BUSY SCHEDULES, THEY DID ALLOCATE A VERY CONSIDERABLE AMOUNT OF TIME TO THE DISCUSSIONS WITH US, AND WE OF COURSE SPENT QUITE A LOT OF TIME IN PREPARATION FOR THE MEETINGS WITH THEM. AND THAT ENABLED US TO HAVE A VERY FULL REVIEW OF THE SITUATION, PARTICULARLY WITH SIR GEOFFREY HOWE IN PREPARATION FOR HIS VISIT TO PEKING WHICH IS IN JUST OVER A WEEK'S TIME. THAT WAS A VERY USEFUL REVIEW AND AS ON PREVIOUS OCCASIONS, WE REACHED A CLOSE IDENTITY OF VIEWS.
+AS FOR ME, I AM ONLY GOING TO BE HERE FOR TWO OR THREE DAYS BEFORE I HAVE THE PLEASURE OF SEEING YOU AGAIN AT THE AIRPORT ON TUESDAY WHEN I AM GOING TO PEKING. I SHALL STAY UP THERE. I WON'T BE COMING BACK AFTER THE NEXT ROUND. I SHALL STAY IN PEKING AND WAIT FOR SIR GEOFFREY TO ARRIVE. WE WILL BE THERE FOR HIS VISIT AND WE WILL THEN COME BACK TO HONG KONG WITH HIM.
+ AND I KNOW THAT HE WANTED ME TO SAY THAT HE IS LOOKING FORWARD VERY MUCH TO HIS VISIT AND TO MEETING AS MANY PEOPLE AS HE CAN WHILE HE IS HERE.
+THAT IS ALL WE HAVE FOR YOU AT THE MOMENT. VERY MUCH.+
THANK YOU
ARRIVING BACK TOGETHER WITH THE GOVERNOR THIS EVENING WERE NINE UNOFFICIAL MEMBERS OF THE EXECUTIVE COUNCIL. THEY ARE SIR SZE-YVEN CHUNG, MR OSWALD CHEUNG, MR ROGER LOBO, MR LI FOOK- WO, MR LO TAK-SHING, MISS LYDIA DUNN, MR LEE QUO-WEI,
MR CHEN SHOU-LUM AND MISS MARIA TAM.
THE PARTY WAS MET AT THE AIRPORT BY THE CHIEF SECRETARY, SIR PHILIP HADDON-CAVE.
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