CO129-625-5 Hong Kong University- establishment fund 1-3-1950 - 31-1-1951 — Page 22

ORIG ON 54494/.50

NOTES OF THE MESTING WITH THE GOVERNOR

OF HONG KONG HELD AT 11. 30 a.m.

ON 20TH JUNE, 1950.

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22

PRESENT:

Sir Alexander Grantham (Governor of Hong Kong)

Mr. Paskin

Sir C. Cox

Mr. Sidebotham

Mr. Adams (University Council)

Mr. E.R.Edmonds

Mr.

Hall

Mr. Robison

Miss Gwilliam

Mr. Fairclough

Mr. Sidebotham explained that the Colonial University Grants Advisory Committee had recommended that £250,000 from the C.D. & W. Higher Education allocation should be made available to the University of Hong Kong; he also referred to the recommendations by the Inter-University Council visitors that the £250,000 promised by the Treasury in the 1948 Financial Settlement should be made available immediately and that the Treasury should be approached in the hope that they would contribute up to £250,000 towards the establishment of an endowment fund.

Mr. Adams said that most Universities and University Colleges in the Colonies had been made administering authorities for C.D. & W. grants as this was much more convenient than having these grants administered by local governments. He added that good use could be made of the facilities which could be created at the University by the expenditure of the two sums of £250,000 which had been recommended for capital works even if a sufficiently large endowment fund were not available to increase tho recurrent expenditure as much as was thought desirable; for optimum use of the services however increased recurrent expenditure would be necessary.

The Governor said that he foresaw considerable difficulty over the endowment fund. On present estimates of necessary recurrent expenditure and assuming a 32 yield from the fund he had calculated that £1.3 million would be necessary; even if H. M. G. contributed a quarter of a million

nd the Hong Kong Government also gave a quarter of a million this would still leave £0.8 million to be raised otherwise. He was not very hopeful of obtaining much private money at present in view of the fact that the share market was low and private contributions would involve selling out at a loss. In this connection it was hoped that the Public Announcement of the assistance on capital expenditure which was being given to the University would act as a stimulus to encourage private subscription; the stimulus would

be greater if at the time a public announcement was made it could be said that H. M. G. and the

/Hong