TNAG-0434-FCO40-499-UK-interest-in-labour-and-social-affairs-of-Hong-Kong-1975 — Page 28

CONFIDENTIAL

II.

TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

1.

Disbursements on technical assistance to Hong Kong over

the past three years have been as follows:

1971/72

1972/73

1973/74

£84,000

£85,700

£36,800

It is expected that expenditure in 1974/75 will amount to approximately £38,000, almost all of which will be spent on the provision of training in the United Kingdom; this follows the pattern of expenditure in previous years.

2.

Apart from a modest annual training programme, no other forms of technical assistance are made available to Hong Kong in view of their ability and willingness to pay for manpower expertise, equipment etc. themselves. However, in 1971 and 1972 it was agreed between the FCO and ODM at Ministerial level, to make a capital aid grant of £500,000 for books and equipment for Hong Kong Polytechnic as well as a grant of £400,000 for British equipment for four new technical institutes. It has now been agreed in the ODM that it would be appropriate to provide both grants from technical assistance funds. The provision of aid for the Polytechnic was announced publicly in November 1972 during a Ministerial visit to Hong Kong.

3.

The reasons for offering this aid were both political and commercial and were basically as follows:-

(a) in the months leading up to this announcement of aid

we were going through a particularly difficult time in our relations with Hong Kong. The Governor had advised that Hong Kong had a political need for outward and visible signs of a special and beneficial relationship with the United Kingdom.

It was

recognised that carefully selected aid could meet

this need;

CONFIDENTIAL

/(b)