NOTHING TO BE WRITTEN IN THIS MARGIN
CONFIDENTIAL
Britain and Hong Kong was mutually benefficial one,
and therefore it should not be expected that conflicts
must always be decided in Hong Kong's favour.
8. Sir John Coperthwaite and Sir Hugh Norman-Walker
explained that it was not so much conflicts of interest.
Hong Kong industrialists understood the interests of
the British textile industry.
9.
The trouble was when people in London pretended to
know better than those in Hong Kong what was in the
best interests of Hong Kong and when Britain objected
to Hong Kong's policies on general policy grounds, even
doctrinal grounds, such as in recent troubles over sales
to Canada. This sometimes meant that Hong Kong's point
of view could not even be put in/international forum.
On cotton textiles it was accepted that the Hong Kong
Government spoke with its own voice in international
discussions. This should perhaps be the pattern for
(Rhodesia had had separate status in
other topics.
GATT.)
10. Mr. Stewart said that there
was, nevertheless, xitk
the constitutional position. He was responsible to
Parliament for Hong Kong and Members of Parliament
could legitimately ask questions about it.
present
(exercise
We must see
O
how far we could get with the guidelines but if he
appreciated the position correctly it was that the
woe concomed that their
Hong Kong Government point of view should be properly
understood in Whitehall.
He recognised that it was
his own Department that was responsible for seeing to
this. Sir John Cowperthwaite said that it was also
desimble
that where possible the Hong Kong
Government should be able to take an independent line
in international negotiations.
*.Labour and Social Services
11. Mr. Stewart said that he had learnt that there was
less disparity than he thought between labour conditions
/in
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.