TNAG-0049-FCO40-85-Responsibility-for-dependent-territories-interests-after-the-1968 — Page 11

W{B)L 51-7433

NOTHING TO BE WRITTEN IN THIS MARGIN

Registry CG 312 No.

DRAFT

Minute

Type 1 +

SECURITY CLASSIFICATION

To:-

Top Secret.

Mr. Combs

Secret.

Confidential.

Restricted.

Unclassified.

PRIVACY MARKING

In Confidence

From

H. H. Stewart

Telephone No. & Ext.

Department

Hong Kong

Copies to:

Mr. M. P. Preston

My minute of 26 August was no more than

an interim reply to Mr. Preston's minute to you

about the interests of dependent territories

Mr. J. C. Morgan

and keeping them informed of international

Ausm

Mr. G. S. Whitehead developments affecting. I explained that it

(c.r.)

forms time

A

would be a voelt or two before I was able to

Mr. W. S. Carter

give a considered reply.

2. I agree, of course, that there is a

here

problem, and one which needs to be emphasised

at this stage when the merger of the Foreign

and Commonwealth Office is impending. In the

days of the Colonial Office it was the direct

it's ap responsibility of the Economic Relations

Department to watch the interests of dependent

territories in this sort of context, but it

a single departiment 1201-

not now posible

is harder now to identify the responsible office might take on

for continuing this function. In fact there

is no obvious machinery any longer for doing

80.

mentioned

3. In my previous minute I looked briefly

S at the possibility that Commercial Councellors

and

or

Secretaries for overseas posts might bear in

ний

བ

mind the interests of dependent territories

when there are international developments

thron

affecting, but I have since come to the

conclusion that it would be expecting too

much to ask them to do this.

They

/cannot be