XN000022-1996-03-15 — Page 4

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Governor: Can I just, let's not talk about sources, let's talk about what is actually said on what I am saying on the record, on what the Chief Secretary is saying on the record, and don't forget whatever sources, private sources, sources behind closed hands, sources behind closed doors, whatever sources say, the Government of Hong Kong is run today by me, and it's run by Mrs Chan, the Chief Secretary, and it's run by Donald Tsang, and in the future the Hong Kong Government will continue to have autonomy in budgetary and financial affairs. What do sources say? I will tell you what one source says. I will tell you what Chinese officials say to us behind closed doors, and I am sure they'd say it outside as well.

They say that the future SAR Government will have all the autonomy in fiscal matters in the future it has today. Indeed some of them say that Hong Kong will have more autonomy. I don't quite know what that means, because Hong Kong has complete autonomy today. Does the Governor of Hong Kong go back to London to check the budget before a budget is announced? The first thing the British Treasury know about a Hong Kong budget is when they read about it in the newspapers. And that is exactly what is promised for Hong Kong after July 1, 1997. So sources this or sources that, but that is the situation. I do think there is one thing which is extremely important and which I hope that sources either publicly or privately will make absolutely clear. The 97-98 budget is the only budget in Hong Kong's history where we will have to have this sort of arrangements. And it is the only budget like this in Hong Kong's history because it's the only budget which actually straddles a transfer of sovereignty. Okay. Thank you very much indeed.

End

Transcript of Chief Secretary's media session

Following is the transcript of the Chief Secretary, Mrs Anson Chan's media session after addressing the Conference on Work Ethics of Young People in the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre this (Friday) afternoon:

Chief Secretary: I want to say something about preparation of the 1997/98 budget because I don't want there to be any misunderstanding about this. As you know, at the moment, preparation of all our budgets is solely the responsibility of the Hong Kong Government. The UK Government has no role to play in this and that will be so after 1997. Under the Basic Law, Hong Kong enjoys a high degree of financial autonomy and the Chinese side has made it abundantly clear that they see no role for themselves in the preparation of our budget after 1997. It will be solely a matter for the SAR Government. Of course the 1997/98 budget is a rather special one because three months fall on this side of 1997 and nine months fall on the other side of 1997.