17
that any U. K. grant to the Hong Kong University would
be without prejudice to the financial requirements of
the British Council's work in China and of the proposals
in the Scarborough report.
To begin with, this condition would delay
a decision on the future of the Hong Kong University,
which is now urgently needed. The re-opening of the
University is held up for this decision
-
its present
activities being of a minimum character carried on
under the control of a Committee for Higher Education.
Secondly, from the political aspect, the absence of
& decision on the future of the University and the
delay in its re-opening are adding to the uncertainty
which is felt in business circles and by the Chinese
population of Hong Kong as to our future intentions
regarding the Colony. Mayhew suggests that the future
of the Hong Kong University should await a decision on
the general question of the future of Hong Kong, which
cather will be coming forward for Ministerial
onsideration from the Far Eastern (Official) Committee.
But for the reasons already given we ought not to defer
a-decision on the Hong Kong University much longer and
should hope that, for this purpose, we might proceed
on the assumption that there is no question of the
etrocession of Hong Kong within the foreseeable future. etro
Thirdly, if it should be a case of choosing between
eking and Hong Kong as the centre of British culture
md British scholarship in China, a strong argument in
avour of Hong Kong, in my view, is that the University
already there and that it can start functioning as
I centre as soon as a decision has been taken and the
lebessary funds are assured.
On the respective merits of the Hong Kong
niversity and British Council activities, I would
nly say that I understand that Professor Roxby, the hief representative of the British Council in China,
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