Mr Time Di
CONFIDENTIAL, Mr Short Keeping copy
to see
2
PA
BD 2811
23/1
MEETING ON POSSIBLE CONSTITUTIONAL CHANGES: GOVERNMENT HOUSE
13 JANUARY 1975
Comes to Sir D. Watson
HONG KONG
Copied tHkil 9/568/2
?.S. Lord Gorony- Roberts. Des 23/1
Lord Goronwy-Roberts
Mr. P. Male
Mr. A. Stuart
Sir Murray MacLehose
Mr. Roberts
Mr. Bray
* CLIVED
N 52
23 JAN.975
HKK 1/6
Lord Goronwy-Roberts explained the political pressures in the
United Kingdom for widening the popular base of Government in
Hong Kong. He accepted that direct elections for Legislative
Council were not possible. He also agreed with UMELCO that
members would have to represent the community as a whole and not
just sectional interests. There was however a need to widen
the reservoir from which suitable people could be drawn. The
Urban Council being elective, and the Mutual Aid Committees,
albeit non elective, might feed this reservoir. He had suggested
this line of approach to UMELCO but had detected some lack of
enthusiasm.
2.
Going to the second tier of Government, Lord Goronwy-
Roberts wondered whether there would be possibilities perhaps
for wider franchise of electors for the Urban Council.
3.
Sir Murray MacLehose said that he understood the value
to the UK of demonstrating wider popular support for the Hong
Kong Government. He agreed that all possible sources of natural
leaders must be tapped. The Mutual Aid Committees could and
would throw up such leaders, but they must be given time.
Urban Council was already a source of Legislative Council members.
Two present members of LEGCO were also on the Urban Council, and many others, including Sir Y. K. Kan had been URB CO members in the
past.
4.
The
On the suggestion that the different type of people might
be thrown up by widening the elective process in the Urban Council,
he commented that in practice the Urban Council members, both
elected
and otherwise, came from the same sort of background
CONFIDENTIAL
/as
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.