XN000022-1996-06-12 — Page 3

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Transcript of Governor's media session

Following is the transcript of the media session by the Governor, the Rt Hon Christopher Patten, after visiting Tseung Kwan O this (Wednesday) afternoon:

Governor: Good afternoon. I'm very pleased to have the opportunity in Tseung Kwan O this afternoon of seeing some of the progress that the Housing Authority has been making in carrying out both its performance pledges and its policy pledges.

I was particularly interested to see two things. First of all, the work which is being done to improve the management of estates and to make absolutely certain that tenants get as fast a service as possible when it comes to maintenance, to dealing with some of the problems that prop up even in the best-run block of flats. Secondly, I was pleased to see what is being done to deal with the problems of housing our senior citizens. They have particular needs. It requires as much flexibility as possible in managing the existing housing stock and in building new houses and flats. So I was very pleased to see what the Housing Authority has been doing as well in order to keep the pledges that we've made about improved housing for senior citizens and increased housing for senior citizens.

Question: Mr Patten. A lot of people are arguing that the provisional legislature is

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Governor: I'd say very much what the British Foreign Secretary has said in the past, what I've said in the past, what the Chief Secretary and others have said in the past and continue to say.

In our judgement, to quote from the Foreign Secretary, the establishment of a provisional legislature, the dismantling of the existing legislature, would be reprehensible and unjustifiable. What is the purpose of doing it. The purpose we all know is to exclude some people from the Legislative Council that some Chinese officials don't like. That's hardly going to lead to a fairly elected or representative legislature. So as far as we are concerned, there is one fairly elected legislature in Hong Kong. I've been pleased that some senior Chinese officials including in meetings, the Premier and the Vice-Premier have both made it absolutely clear that they understand there is only one Legislative Council before the 30th of June 1997, and if they seek to dismantle that legislature on the 30th of June 1997 or rather on the 1st of July they'll have to explain how, what they're doing is in line with the Joint Declaration and the Basic Law if they can. Until the 30th of June 1997 we intend to do absolutely nothing at all which could conceivably undermine the authority and the status of the Legislative Council. Now I've been saying that for some months. The British Government has been saying that for some months. Other members of the Hong Kong Government have been saying that for some months. That's our policy. It has been our policy. It's our policy today. It will be our policy till the 30th of June 1997. Full stop.