Mr Pauncefort
cc.
Mr Stuart
Ir Cox
Mr Bullock
Mr Preston
Mrs Haccoll
Mr Kerr
Mr Ensor
Mr Dunnill
35
FUTURE OF THE DEPENDENT TERRITORIES
I refer to Mr Champion's minute to Mr Larmour of 12 December.
2.
You will be receiving separately from our Caribbean Department some comments on the paper from the particular standpoint of the Associated States; among their suggestions is that the preparation of the proposed paper for the OPD should be delayed at least until our two Permanent Secretaries have met, as at present proposed, to discuss policy towards the Associated States on 7 January.
3.
Meanwhile, if it is in fact decided that the paper must go forward on the lines proposed, I have three relatively small and one more substantial amendment to suggest from the more general ODM point of view:
4.
1. In paragraph 3 of the draft covering paper, line 10:
"The quantifiable cost to us of Dependence is likely to be marginally higher than of Independence, by virtue of the greater obligations which we have towards the Dependencies; but essentially, the choice rests on political grounds.
11.
iii.
11
In paragraph 2 of the "Officials'" paper, line 5:
#1
...involves a significant political, as well as financial. cost".
In paragraph 12 of the "Officials" paper, first sentence: "The choice of an appropriate level of aid for the Dependencies is primarily a political one, though the criteria to be applied and the forms in which the aid is given must depend also on economic judgments."
My substantive comment relates to the new draft Recommendation and is based in part on the very pertinent comment made to you in Mr Ensor's minute ORG 201/233/01 of 17 December, and in part on my feeling that the whole of the draft tends to establish an undue dichotomy between the political and aid aspects of the problem to which it is addressed surely, in this exercise at least, political and aid considerations represent two sides of the same coin. I therefore suggest that the Recommendation should read:
Grip
"20.a. Within the time scale 1975-1980 IDIG should adopt a
deliberate policy of accelerated decolonisation of all the present Dependent Territories unless it can be shown that continued dependence is either in HIG's own interests (ie Hong Kong, BAT, BIOT, FIP, St Helena/Ascension) or desired by and in the interests of the inhabitants.
b. Within the same time scale it should be our objective to help the Dependent Territories to achieve self-sustained growth; for those Territories which appear unlikely within a
/longer
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.