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CONFIDENTIAL
DRAFT TELEGRAM FROM MR HUBBACK TO GOVERNOR OF HONG KONG
PROPOSED HONG KONG SHIPPING REGISTRY
We were glad to have the preliminary views set out in your
telegram of 17 January which raise a number of questions,
viz:
(A) How would 'close links with Hong Kong' be defined?
(B) How would the acceptability of foreign certifica-
tes be judged by comparing the standards required
by individual countries with our own or case by
case according to the knowledge and experience of
individual officers? And what is meant by 'on
the basis of existing British requirements'?
Do you have it in mind that the certificates of
certain countries would not be accepted and would
it be possible, in the longer term, to withstand
pressure to accept them?
If (A) and (B) were brought into effect, presumably Hong Kong
would, like Singapore, withdraw from the Commonwealth
Shipping Agreement whereby your certificates were acceptable
on ships of other Commonwealth countries including our own.
(D) What prior arrangements for dealing with foreign
masters are contemplated and could they be made
effective?
(E) Would you widen the conditions for registration to
require the principal place of business to be
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CONFIDENTIAL
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