TNAG-0309-FCO40-345-Contributions-of-Hong-Kong-for-costs-of-maintaining-military-1971 — Page 152

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5. HMG FULLY REALISE THAT DESPITE HONG KONG'S SPECTACULARLY

BOOMING ECONOMY, THE COLONY'S FUTURE TRADING POSITION IS TO A

CONSIDERABLE DEGREE DEPENDENT ON EXTERNAL FACTORS OVER WHICH THE

HONG KONG GOVERNMENT CAN EXERCISE LITTLE CONTROL. HMG HAVE BEEN

DOING AND WILL CONTINUE TO DO THEIR BEST TO MINIMISE THE PRESSURES

WHICH MAY DEVELOP AGAINST THE COLONY'S ECONOMY AS A RESULT OF THESE

FACTORS. IF THESE PRESSURES WERE TO DEVELOP TO SUCH AN EXTENT

THAT HONG KONG'S ECONOMY WERE SERIOUSLY THREATENED, A NEW SITUATION WOULD HAVE BEEN CREATED AND THIS WOULD HAVE TO BE

CONSIDERED BOTH BY THE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT AND BY HMG IN THE

LIGHT OF THE CIRCUMSTANCES AT THE TIME.

6. THE VIEWS OF THE UNOFFICIAL MEMBERS AS EXPRESSED IN PARAGRAPH

13 OF THEIR MEMORANDUM ARE NOTED AND IT IS RECOGNISED THAT THERE

ARE STRONGLY HELD VIEWS ON THIS SUBJECT. HMG APPRECIATE ALSO

THAT HONG KONG'S SITUATION WAS SUCH THAT DEVALUATION RESULTED IN

THE COLONY'S SUSTAINING LOSSES IN 1967.

7. IT IS TRUE THAT WHEN MR. HEATH, AS LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION,

VISITED HONG KONG AND THE FAR EAST DURING JANUARY 1970, HE MENTIONED

THE FIGURE OF £300 MILLION IN RELATION TO BRITAIN'S EARNINGS OF

FOREIGN EXCHANGE FROM MALAYSIA AND SINGAPORE. MR. HEATH WAS SPEAKING

IN THE CONTEXT OF GENERAL DEFENCE POLICY EAST OF SUEZ AND THE FIGURE

OF £300 MILLION DID NOT RELATE TO HONG KONG.

DOUGLAS-HOME

FILES

HKD

FED DEF D FPAD

ATD

COD

PS

PS/FUS

COPIES TO

IR D J J BRACK TREASURY.

MR AF THORPE FI(AIR) 2 MOD

MR RJ SMITH DOE LAMBETH BRIDGE HOUSE MR PD NATRNE MOD

MR R GEDLING TREASURY

MR E STRETTON DOE LAMBETH BRIDGE HOUSE. MR F H GWYNN ́MOD

SIR L MONSON

SIR S TOMLINSON HR BOTTOMLEY

AR WILFORD

MR D A SCOTT MR ROSE

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