SIR MURRAY MACLEHOSE GBE KCMG KCVO
Sir Murray was born on 16 October 1917 and educated at Rugby and Balliol College, Oxford. After war service in the RNVR he joined the Foreign Service in 1947. His first appointment was as Vice Consul (later Consul) in Hankow in China where he remained until 1950. He then served successively in Prague (1951-54), Wellington (1954-56) and Paris (1956-59). After promotion to Counsellor in 1959 he was seconded to Hong Kong as Political Adviser. On his return to the Foreign Office in 1963 he was appointed Head of Far Eastern Department and then, from 1965 to 1967, Principal Private Secretary to two Secretaries of State, Mr Michael Stewart and Mr George Brown. He served as HM Ambassador in Saigon from 1967 to 1969 and in Copenhagen from 1969 to 1971.
Sir Murray was appointed Governor and Commander-in-Chief of Hong Kong in November 1971, initially for 5 years. The present exten- sion of his term of office is the fifth to be agreed. His appoint- ment was extended first by one year to November 1977, then by a further year to November 1978, and then to August 1979, and most recently to April 1980.
Relations between Hong Kong and China have steadily improved during Sir Murray's Governorship and are now excellent. In March this year he became the first Governor since the war to pay an official visit to China, where he was received by Vice Premier Deng Xiaoping and other Chinese leaders. In June he was recalled for consultations with Government Ministers over the problems of Vietnamese refugees and illegal immigration from China. He subse- quently attended the Geneva Conference on Indo-Chinese refugees from 20 to 21 July..
During Sir Murray MacLehose's Governorship, Hong Kong has developed into a major financial centre, and has become a very important force in world trade. His period of office has also been distin- guished by outstanding achievements in social development, particularly in housing and education.
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