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Question: this morning that Anson Chan reported to you her trip to Beijing?
Governor: She reported on her trip to Beijing. I'd already spoken to her over the weekend by telephone. But we had a good discussion about her trip. I'm glad that it went well. I think it was a useful building block in our relationship with Peking. And I hope it will have provided some reassurance for the civil service.
Question: Did she mention to you her private meeting with Mr Lu, the ten minutes?
Governor: Of course. It's slightly more than ten minutes.
Question: Can you tell us what it's about?
Governor: I'm mad about you, but I do think that's one of the daftest questions that I've ever been asked.
Question: Regarding the provisional legislature, do you foresee any difficulty in assisting the ...?
Governor: You know perfectly well what our position is on a provisional legislature. There is only one Legislative Council in Hong Kong before 30th June 1997 and that's that.
Question: Has Mr Cook given you any indication of your future ...?
Governor: No, he hasn't, nor have I asked for one.
Question: (follow-up)
Governor: Very confident. One of the very few policies on which there's been cross party support at Westminster over the last four years has been policy on Hong Kong, and I hope that will continue right through to the 30th June 1997, and indeed beyond. But while I'm sure that opposition spokesmen will occasionally mention reservations about this or that aspect of the handling over policy over the last four years, by and large there's been substantial support from the Liberal Democrats and from the main opposition party, the Labour Party as well as of course from the Conservative Party.
Question: Do you think a Labour Government would have anything to offer Hong Kong...?