CO129-502-4 Acquisition of Kai Tak for an aerodrome- provision of funds 11-1-1927 - 12-5-1927 — Page 61

RECEIVED

4 MAY 1927 COL.OFFICE

(27)

61

TELEGRAM from the Governor of Hongkong to the

Secretary of State for the Colonies.

Dated 4th May, 1927.

(Received Colonial Office 6.55 a.m. 4th May, 1927.)

Confidential. Your telegram of 25th April

(24) Dredging and aerodrome.

Emond to ca 12 May

62/2.9009

My earlier telegrams were

meant to indicate that I regarded aerodrome as of such vital importance that if His Majesty's Government refused to pay for it I should still have been prepared to go on charging the cost to the loan though I should consider such arrangement very unfair to the Colony as the aerodrome is of even greater importance

imperially than locally.

The matter was before the Finance Committee 29th April and unofficial members unanimously advised that the Colony should be called upon to pay for more than at the most one quarter of the cost of the aerodrome. My view is that His Majesty's Government should bear the cost of acquiring and forming the aerodrome site and that the Colony should bear additional cost due to utilising dredged material. Advantages of combining dredging with reclamation are reduction in time required to complete the aerodrome and reduction in cost to the Colony of dredging.

As regards further dredging this can be, if necessary, left over for consideration during progress of work already authorised as the amount of material

available from authorised work is now estimated on further survey (at) 1,470,000 cubic yards instead of 1,030,000 cubic yards and will nearly suffice for

that