TNAG-0785-FCO40-989-Study-of-labour-relations-in-Hong-Kong-by-Professor-H-A-Turn-1978 — Page 10

Foreign and Commonwealth. Office

London SW1A 2AH

SWIA

19 January 1977

Sir Murray MacLehose GBE KCMG KCVO

Governor

HONG KONG

TURNER STUDY

1.

PLOUTTEE

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I enclose a copy of Professor Turner's report on his Study of Labour Relations in Hong Kong.

2. You will see that Turner is at pains to point out that his Report should be considered an interim one only and, indeed, it is entitled "An Interim and Provisional Review". When Turner came to see Harry Hurst and me this week for a

general discussion, he said that there may be some minor amendments to be made to his Report in the light of a further examination of the results of the survey carried out by Dr Fosh. These are unlikely to affect materially what he has already written. He has promised to let me have any amendments by the end of this month. When I have received them I shall then have the Report retyped and shall submit it to Ministers.

3. I shall, of course, need to have your views on Turner's Report and, in particular, on its conclusions (paragraphs 73-80); before submitting it to Ministers. I understand that Turner left a copy of his Report with Ian Price and, no doubt, the Labour Department have already been considering it.

4. Subject to the views of Ministers, the plan is for Turner's Report to be submitted to the Overseas Labour Consultative Committee (OLCC). This would be in accordance with the undertaking given by Ministers that the TUC (and the CBI) would be "associated" with the Turner Study at some stage. The OLCC is provisionally due to meet at the end of March, but we shall need to send copies of Turner's Report to the TUC and the CBI sometime in advance so that they can consider it properly. The International Committee of the TUC are due to hold a meeting on 7 March and we should like to get a copy of the Report to the TUC about two weeks before that meeting. order to give us time to consider your comments and to clear our lines with Ministers, I should be most grateful if you could let me have your views during (say) the week beginning Monday, 7 February. If Turner should make any significant amendments to his Report, I shall send you a telegram.

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