CO129-566-16 Granting of permits for Hong Kong Chinese to work in Britain 23-2-1938 - 3-2-1939 — Page 14

Copy to Ho6

OX CONFIDENTIAL.

53531/19738

14

16 NOV 130

GOVERNMENT HOUSE,

HONG KONG.

31st October, 1938.

2.0

3

8/13773/33

Sir,

I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of

Mr. Ormsby-Gore's confidential (2) despatch of 28th April,

1938, transmitting correspondence relative to an enquiry

whether persons of Chinese race born in Hong Kong are at

liberty to enter the United Kingdom in order to work in

Chinese laundries.

2.

The action that could usefully be taken in

Hong Kong with the object of limiting the grant of passport facilities to Chinese born in Hong Kong to proceed to the

United Kingdom in accordance with the views expressed by

the Home office, was discussed in previous correspondence terminating with Sir P. Cunliffe-Lister's despatch No.228

of 6th June, 1933, in which the grant of full passports

for the United Kingdom to Chinese of the business and

professional classes, who can prove Hong Kong birth and

produce satisfactory evidence as to character and ability

to support themselves in their existing walk of life, was

approved. At the same time (vide Sir William Peel's

1/13713/33 despatch No.93 of 20th February, 1933) it was suggested

that any request for similar facilities from Chinese

THE RIGHT HONOURABLE

MALCOLM MACDONALD, M.P.,

&c.,

&c.,

&c.