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THURSDAY, JULY 4, 1991
THE GOVERNOR : I DID SAY EARLIER I WASN'T GOING TO GO THROUGH POINTS WHICH HAD BEEN DIFFERENCES AND WHICH HAVE NOW BEEN RESOLVED, BUT YOU WILL SEE THAT THERE IS NOTHING WRITTEN DOWN THERE, ABSOLUTELY NOTHING ABOUT A VETO POWER OR ANY PARTICULAR ROLE FOR A VICE CHAIRMAN OR INDEED WHO THAT VICE CHAIRMAN SHOULD BE.
LAI TING-Y]U (NEXT MAGAZINE): WE ARE NOW HAVING A SUB COMMITTEE UNDER THE JLG DEALING WITH THE AIRPORT PROGRAMME. FT LETS ME THINK THAT WE MAY HAVE ANOTHER SUB COMMITTEE UNDER THE JLG TO DEAL WITH HOUSING PROGRAMME, OR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE MEDICAL SERVICE OR ANY OTHER MAJOR DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME. DO YOU THINK IT WILL HAPPEN IN THE FUTURE, AND DO YOU AGREE THAT AIRPORT PROGRAMME IS A DOMESTIC PROGRAMME; IT'S SOMETHING CONCERNED WITH DOMESTIC AFFAIR, IT SHOULD NOT BE AN AFFAIR DEALING BETWEEN THE BRITISH AND CHINESE, THROUGH DIPLOMATIC CHANNEL ?
THE GOVERNOR: I DON'T EXPECT THERE WILL BE SUB COMMITTEES SET UP TO DEAL WITH A WHOLE RANGE OF THINGS. I SAID EARLIER THAT THE AIRPORT WAS A PARTICULAR SORT OF ANIMAL, WHICH THEREFORE NEEDED TO BE DEALT WITH IN A PARTICULAR SORT OF WAY, AND WE ALL KNOW HIT PARTICULAR DIFFICULTIES ON THE AIRPORT. SO WE'VE GOT TO FIND WAYS OF DEALING WITH THOSE AND THIS IS A SENSIBLE WAY OF DEALING WITH IT. IT DOESN'T MEAN THAT ON EVERY MAJOR AREA OF POLICY THAT THERE WILL BE ANY NEED FOR SUB COMMITTEES. AND IT'S ALSO PERHAPS IMPORTANT TO POINT OUT THAT THE JOINT LIAISON GROUP IS SPECIFICALLY LAID DOWN AS BEING AN ORGAN FOR LIAISON. IT'S NOT, THE WORDING OF THE JOINT DECLARATION, IT'S NOT AN ORGAN FOR POWER. IT'S AN ORGANISATION FOR LIAISON PURPOSES. SO YOUR OTHER POINT WAS, THAT SHOULD IT BE DEALT WITH THROUGH DIPLOMATIC CHANNELS. WHEN WE HIT THE SORT OF PROBLEMS THAT WE HAVE HIT ON THE AIRPORT, IT DID RAISE IT TO THE DIPLOMATIC LEVEL, INDEED FOR A PERIOD OF TIME THIS WAS COVERING THINGS, SPREADING OVER TO THINGS, NOT SIMPLY RELATED TO THE AIRPORT. SO, ALL EFFORTS HAD TO BE MOBILISED TO DEAL WITH THAT PARTICULAR PROBLEM AND THAT INCLUDED DEALING WITH IT ON A DIPLOMATIC LEVEL. I LOOK AT IT VERY PRAGMATICALLY, IF YOU FACE A PROBLEM, IF IT HAS GOT RAISED TO THAT SORT OF LEVEL, IF IT EXPANDS OUTWARDS BEYOND WHAT IS OUR IMMEDIATE SCOPE IN HONG KONG, THEN YOU'VE GOT TO FIND A WAY OF DEALING WITH IT AND WHAT'S IMPORTANT IS THAT IT'S DEALT WITH.
FRANKIE YIP (WAH KIU YAT PO): IS THERE A CONSENSUS IN INTERPRETING THE WORDS OF CONSULTATIONS 2 EXACTLY WHAT IS THE LINE OF CONSULTATION ?
THE GOVERNOR: SORRY, WHAT IS THE LAST POINT OF YOUR QUESTION ?
FRANKIE YIP (WAH KIU YAT PO): WHAT IS THE LINE OF CONSULTATION ? LIKE BETWEEN WHO HAS THE POWER TO CONSULT WITH, WHO IS BEING CONSULTED?
THE GOVERNOR: THE IDEA OF CONSULTATION I THINK I'VE SAID EARLIER, THERE'S NO PROBLEM WITH THE IDEA OF CONSULTATION, THERE IS A POTENTIAL PROBLEM IF THAT IMPLIES SOME SORT OF A VETO POWER. I THINK THAT'S A POINT WHICH I REMEMBER THE BRITISH FOREIGN SECRETARY GOING INTO IT AT SOME LENGTH WHEN HE WAS HERE EARLIER IN THE YEAR.
/LOUIS TING (HK ECONOMIC TIMES):