CO129-526-7 Proposed vehicle & passenger ferry for Hong Kong Harbour- plans of the development of the... 22-4-1930 - 22-4-1930 — Page 39

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holo No. 4

holo No 5.

6 -

Preparations to issue notices calling for tenders in accordance

with these instructions from the Executive Council were taken

in hand but were delayed by the difficulty of arranging the

terms and conditions.

11.

It was understood that Sir Cecil Clementi was opposed

to direct action on the part of the Government even to the

extent of constructing the piers out of Government funds

owing to the present financial position of the Colony, holding

that all our credit would be required to meet necessary

extensions of the water works system and of the aerodrome and

that an additional loan of say $2,000,000 at which the cost

of the Ferry was then estimated could not at that time be

considered. Before his departure from Hong Kong however, as

a result of further representations made to him, he gave permission for the matter to be reopened in Executive Council. The following paragraph occurs in his minute on this point:-

"It appears to me that it will be out of the

"question for the Hong Kong Government to finance

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a vehicular ferry scheme either this year or for

several years to come in view of heavy loan

expenditure which must be incurred on water works

"and largely increased expenditure from revenue "caused by the Salaries' Commission and the drop "in value of silver. If therefore a vehicular ferry "is to be established in the near future, I am

convinced that this can only be done by private enterprise" 12. The matter was then again circulated in Executive Council with a copy of the representations that had been made to Sir Cecil Clementi copies of which are enclosed with this despatch.

The