TNAG-0249-FCO40-285-Effect-of-entry-of-UK-into-EEC-on-exports-from-Hong-Kong-1970 — Page 153

Our reference: IG 205/77/01

Your reference:

JRD Gildea Esq

CE 3 (3)

Board of Trade

1 Victoria Street

London

SW1

Dear Gildea

HONG KONG

1.

CONFIDENTIAL

MINISTRY OF OVERSEAS DEVELOPMENT

Eland House, Stag Place, LONDON S.W.1 Telegrams: Ministrant, London, Telex Telephone: 01-834-2377

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I would refer you to Mercy's letter to you of 29th July 1970, and suggest that the sentence which Treasury would like to see added after "United Kingdom" in paragraph 41 of your draft on Hong Kong might be slightly amended to read:-

"The use of development aid to help a dependency as wealthy as Hong Kong is at present would clearly need special justification and should be avoided if at all possible. However, so far Hong Kong has not found difficulty etc".

2. The words underlined above would replace the words "would clearly create a difficult precedent and one which ought to".

3. As we see it, paragraph 41 of your draft must be read in the context of Hong Kong's having, in. the circumstances with which this paragraph deals, suffered damage, possibly quite serious damage to hor Trade, so that her eligibility for aid might be rather greater than at present.

4. Secondly, it is doubtful if the point about creating a difficult precedent is very strong: Gibraltar is another dependency with a comparatively high per capita income that is receiving aid in exceptional circumstances; so also are Malta and Singapore, and they are not even colonies.

5. I am copying this letter to later (Treasury), Mercy (Treasury), Preston (BOT), Robinson (FCO), Laird (FCO) and Gregory (Mintech).

Yours sincerely

RO

R V kostowski

CONFIDENTIAL