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Governor: Well. I think that one or two may have said that. But I think overwhelmingly legislators are delighted that the Prime Minister is coming to Hong Kong and very pleased that he's quite properly giving them a good deal of his time while he's in Hong Kong, to listen to what they've got to say and to answer their questions. The Foreign Secretary is the departmental minister with direct responsibility for Hong Kong. He therefore thought it was right to go down to the Legislative Council and I think for the first time to answer their questions in the open. I think that was an important development. Prime Minister is in a different situation. But he'll of course be holding a press conference so that all of you can ask him questions with your usual severity.
Question: Was Mr Major taking precautions against any potential embarrassment that occurred in Rifkind's appearance in LegCo...?
Governor: I don't think there was any embarrassment. If, as happens with any British Prime Minister, you spend two question times every week answering questions from members of parliament, I can assure you that the last thing you're concerned about is appearing in front of legislators.
Question: What do you hope Major's visit will achieve? Do you think it is mainly symbolic...? Or perhaps we can get some clarifications on matters such as right of abode...?
Governor: I very much hope first of all that it will give Mr Major the opportunity of updating himself on what we've achieved in Hong Kong and what we still need to achieve. He'll of course have been from the previous couple of days at the summit in Bangkok at which European Union leaders and Asian leaders will be discussing the future relationship between Europe and Asia and I'm sure that he'll take to that meeting some pretty firm views about Hong Kong and that he'll want to tell people when he comes to Hong Kong some of the things which have been said about the overall Asia-Europe relationship at that meeting. I think he will also want to hear for himself the views of people in Hong Kong on issues like visa-free access for SAR passport holders. He'll want to address Hong Kong on some of the economic problems that we've got to tackle and some of the challenges that lie ahead. He'll want to talk about Hong Kong in the context of what's happening in the region as a whole and I'm sure that he'll regard his days in Hong Kong as being well spent and as having contributed to his experience because the British Government will have to continue taking decisions about Hong Kong over the next 500 days. But I'm sure that he will also want to make it absolutely clear that his interest and the British Government's interest in Hong Kong doesn't end on the June 30, 1997, but continues into the indefinite future.