As regards (a) a decision had recently been taken in consultation with the British Council as to an appropriate division of respon- sibilities in the award of scholarships. (See my circular despatch of 25th May, 1945). By this decision it was agreed that the Council would generally confine themselves to awards of an educational and cultural nature and that the Colonial Development and welfare Act would be used for scholarships of a vocational character such as engineering, medicine and training for Government service. With regard to (b) it was decided, however, after very careful consideration that it would be inappropriate to invoke the machinery of the Act for the first time for such a small scheme and in connection with a Colony then under enemy occupation. There remained the alternative at (c) and it was considered fitting that the Hong Kong Government should assume financial responsibility for the training of engineers who it was thought would be of great value in the rehabilitation of the industrial life of the Colony. In these arguments the Treasury concurred and in a letter dated 9th December, 1944, agreed that the expenditure involved in granting scholarships to up to 12 students should be debited to Hong Kong Government funds. The Hong Kong Planning Unit was consulted and kept fully informed of these arrangements.
6. Unfortunately, owing to the fact that the Chinese Government was reluctant to grant exit permits to British-born students in circumstances which might cause criticism from their own students, several months passed before it was possible for the Hong Kong candidates to be selected. The reasons for the delay are set out in a despatch from 3ir H.Seymour of the 20th March, 1945, which forms Enclosure 4. Further conditions attaching to the award of these scholarships are referred to in the enclosed copies of telegram No.1195 of the 30th September, 1945, from Chungking and telegram No. 1275 of the 9th October, 1945, to Chungking numbered Enclosure 5 and Enclosure 6 respectively. The Selection Committee in China then recommended that, for practical reasons, candidates should be chosen from the Chungking and Yunnanfu areas but that in order that this limitation should not cause ill feeling amongst the others further apprenticeships should be awarded in 1946 for Hong Kong graduates in the coastal areas. At the instance of this Department a reply was telegraphed to the Embassy at Chungking on 17th November, 1945, in the following terms "Colonial Office would prefer the selection of candidates from the Chungking and Yunnanfu areas should be confined to 5 for the present". You will observe that by the date of this telegram the war in the Far East had ended and the colony of Hong Kong was once more under a British administration. In these circumstances it was felt that the scheme should be limited as far as possible until it could be considered by the civil government but that as written examinations had already been submitted and interviews had taken place it was necessary to proceed with the award of a minimum number of scholarships.
7. In due course application forms were received from the Embassy of nineteen candidates together with the results of interviews and written tests. These applications were discussed with the Vice-Chancellor of Hong Kong University and with the Federation of British Industries. The Federation selected those five of British nationality which in their opinion seemed most promising and as you are aware in due course arrangements were made for their journey via Hong Kong.
8. In this connection I should explain that in considering the probable cost of each scholarship it was originally thought that passages between China and India could be arranged by R.A.F.
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