SECRET
actively to groom possible candidates through the locally accepted progression of public service on advisory committees. The Turner study of Labour Relations referrod to in peragraph 22 of Annex C may point the way forward to the development of trade unionism generally.
BRITAIN AND HONG KONG
VI.
33. The relationship between Britain and Hong Kong has followed the normal pattern which has applied to those dependent territories which either received no grant-in-aid or were at a fairly advanced stage of constitutional development. Nevertheless, it is anomalous as compared with the remaining dependent territories most of which are in receipt of aid and have been able to develop along normal constitutional lines. The Secretary of State continues to be responsible for Hong Kong to Parliament, but control, particularly in fiscal matters, has buen gradually relaxed. In the case of Hong Kong this was to some extent an inevitable process given its self-sustaining economy; its increasing sophistication; the development of substantial interests of its own; and its size and predominantly Chinese population.
It would
be extremely difficult to impose on Hong Kong the kind of detailed control formerly imposed by the Colonial Office on grant-aided territories and it is questionable whether there is sufficient expertise left in the amalgamated Diplomatic Service to undertake such a task. Nor does this in any event seem to be necessary provided that an agreed programme on the lines advocated in this Paper has been established with an agreed timetable for its implementation. The question arises as to how the programme can be monitored. For this 8 mmber of changes in the existing arrangement would seem necessary. The first requirement is that a good deal of more relevant information on matters covered by this Section of the Paper should be available to officials both in London and in Hong Kong. Hong Kong regularly supplies a large amount of documentation on a wide range of current activities bt this is not so far sufficiently selective or focussed on matters of particular concern here. Equally, we believe that senior officials in Hong Kong would benefit by a more regular flow of information which highlights the political dimension hore. There is need therefore for a regular flow of informal correspondence on these matters both ways. This should, in our view, be supplemented by regular consultations between senior officials. Bi-annual visits to London by the Governor have already done much to improve the exchange of views on major
/policies
19
SECRET
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.