TNAG-0568-FCO40-701-Planning-paper-on-Hong-Kong-1976 — Page 14

CONFIDENTIAL

(c)

(a)

(e)

Social progress may strengthen our ability to work out an arrangement over Hong Kong with China in due course;

Our international repute will be damaged if social standards in Hong Kong are seen to be behind those in the more advanced areas of the Far East and South East Asia;

Parliamentary and Party pressures are increasing and more attention is and will continue to be focussed on Hong Kong (I do not think that this is a temporary phenomenon).

The Governor endorses (a) to (c) but may not be convinced about (a) and (e). The fundamental questions are whether the policies discussed in his latest despatch go fast enough to meet these requirements and whether the policies outlined in the planning paper are realistic in Hong Kong terms.

6.

The Governor has now been asked to return for discussions in the week beginning 29 March. It would be helpful if you could find time for meetings with him so that we can thrash out the remain- ing differences and work out an agreed line. I also hope that you will be able to get over to the Governor that we are not unsympathetic to his difficulties and are not trying to undermine his position. Nor are we trying to impose on him policies which he cannot implement. But the Hong Kong Department and the supervising Under-Secretaries cannot just be his advocates in London; they have also to interpret and act on Ministerial instructions.

7. In the meantime you may care to send an emollient telegram on the lines of the attached draft. (I should say that we have tried throughout to put our points to the Governor in as tactful a way as possible.)

9 March 1976

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CONFIDENTIAL

Hand Clay

HA H Cortazzi