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DISCUSSION OVER LUNCH BETWEEN THE GOVERNOR OF HONG KONG AND MR CORTAZZI : 11 JANUARY 1980 (ALSO PRESENT: MR CLIFT, HKGD)
Immigration
1. It was agreed that there was some improvement over illegal
immigration. The average for the first week of January had been
129 per day, although there had been fluctuations. The recent
approach by the Ambassador in Peking has produced a reasonably
forthcoming reply but the situation would still want careful watching.
2. On legals, Mr Cortazzi asked whether the current figure of
150 per day would be acceptable if illegal immigration was drastically
reduced. The Governor said that it was impossible to be precise but
that the important thing was that the Hong Kong population could not
be allowed to continue to grow at anything like the present rate.
The problem of the return to China of over-staying legal immigrants was
The Governor pointed out the considerable difficulties
discussed.
of doing this but said that it might be possible to do so in one or
two cases in order to make an example.
Vietnamese Refugees
3. The Governor said that his worry was not so much what to do with
the eventual rump of refugees as the possible danger of a renewed
influx. Mr Cortazzi told the Governor of the recent proposal to the
Cabinet by the Home Secretary (which the Prime Minister had accepted)
that the rate of reception of Vietnamese refugees by the UK should be
accelerated with the target of taking all 10,000 by the end of the
financial year 1980/81.
The Hong Kong Economy
4.
The Governor said that the 1980/81 Budget would probably show
an increase of about 20% in nominal terms or 12% in real terms.
He saw the main current problem as the financing of major public
works, especially housing. While it had been necessary to cut
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