TNAG-0694-FCO40-844-Inspection-of-Hong-Kong-Department-1977 — Page 149

Registry

No.

SECURITY CLASSIFICATION

Top Secret,

Secret

SECRET,

DRAFT

SUBMISSION

To:-

Confidal.

Restricted. Unclassified.

PRIVACY MARKING

MR STANLEY

MR SUTHERLAND

MR. KERR PS/DR OWEN

.....................................In Confidence

Type 1 +

From

I S WINCHESTER

Telephone No. Ext,

Department

CONSOLIDATION OF GIBRALTAR WORK IN SED POLITICAL ASPECTS:

}

1. Officials have agreed that there would be administrative

advantage in consolidating all work on Gibraltar, except

1

for the administration of aid, in Southern European

Department.

This arrangement should prove more efficient

and economic than the present arrangement, whereby

responsibility for Gibraltar's external affairs rests with

one department (SED) and responsibility for Gibraltar's

internal affairs with another (G & GD). Å

}

2. Action on such a move, was, on the Governor's advice,

deferred until after the General Election in September

weighed There are still political factors that should be wife.

After Mr Hattersley's talks with Sir Joshua Hassan and

Mr Xiberras last June there were accusations that HMG was

bent on thrusting the Gibraltarians into the arins of Spain,

‚ ཨ། and making preparations to that end I attach as exampleri:-

1

¿

Gibraltar telno 87, giving the text of a letter from

Sir Joshua Hassan in which he reports that a passage in

HMG's memorandum of 24 June was being interpreted as

"indicating a desire on the part of HMG deliberately to

create a better atmosphere between Gibraltar and Spain

not merely in order to reduce the present difficulties

here but also in the hope that Gibraltarians would,

as a result, become more favourably inclined towards

union with Spain.

Morale has been greatly affected

'138649 D4,107857 300m 2175 MSP