CONFIDENTIAL
NOTE ON MEMPING IN TILE BOARD OF TRADE AT 4.30 P.M. ON MONDAY, 12TH AUGUST 1968.
I called on the Board of Trade at 4.30 p.m. on Monday, 12th August 1968, at Stewart's request to be given a copy of the Aide Memoire, forwarded to Hong Kong by the Commonwealth Office last Saturday (10th August). I was accompanied by Trickett. In making the arrangements for the meeting, Stewart showed some concern for formality and said he assumed that the time suggested for the meeting would be equivalent to the time of receipt by the llong Kong Government of the original of the Aide Memoire. I did not question this assumption.
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lle proposed to take up
Upon my arrival, Stewart said he wished first to raise one matter "off the record". I said I had no objection to this. He then produced a photostat of the article in the Far Eastern Economic Review of 30th June (Page 92) concerning the Scandinavian textile discussions. He said it was obvious to him that the article could only have been written from information supplied by a member of the Hong Kong Government negotiating team and that he found objectionable both the views hold by the Hong Kong Government as reflected in the article and also the breach of confidence which it represented. this matter again when he visited Hong Kong in September. In the meantime, he would like his views reported to Hong Kong. I agreed to do this and added that I was quite sure the Hong Kong Government was also dismayed at the comment in the article but that it would be quite impossible to discover how the magazine had obtained its information. I added that I had defended the current relationship between Whitehall and the Hong Kong Government in answer to probos by Dick Wilson, the former editor of the Far Eastern Economic Review and at present a Times correspondent. seemed somewhat mollified by this.
He
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Stewart then said that he believed I had already seen the Aide Memoire and that in fact I already possessed a copy. Although this was quite true (as I had been given one by the Commonwealth Office that morning) I thought it best not to confess more than that I had already seen the document and went on to say that I was awaiting an official copy from him.
This statement produced some discussion between Stewart and his young assistant (Miss Drew) from which it appeared that he had no copy to give me. I mention this only as background to show you that Industries 1 Eranch has organisational problems.
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Stewart then outlined the background to the Aide Memoire. He began by emphasising that the present approach by H.M.G. was not the result of a sudden decision but that there had already been a very long period of intra-departmental discussion and an exhaustive examination of the British sheeting manufacturers' case for protection. Hong Kong had been served notice that, H.H.G. was interested in this matter as long ago as 31st October 1967 when Orde- Johnstone had written to Bedgwick. The Board of Trade had hoped to deal with it in the context of the productivity study to be completed in the autumn but political factors had made it necessary to act now.
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