TNAG-0971-FCO40-1190-Resettlement-of-Vietnamese-refugees-from-Hong-Kong-in-the-UK-1980 — Page 8

Mr Burns

SEAD

CONFIDENTIAL

C16

Free

HKK 243/2

НСК

* ------

RECEIVED IN.6

16 DEC1900

DEMK OFFICE

t-

REGISTRY Action Taken

VIETNAMESE REFUGEES : US SECRETARY OF STATE

1.

DEC

NEW UK QUOTA :

No

LETTER FROM

2.

Thank you for sending me a copy of your letter o: 12tember to Mr Goddard (Home Office) enclosing a copy of your draft submission, vocering a draft reply to Mr Muskie's letter.

2.

The draft letter was cleared with HKGD but not the draft submission. I am unhappy with the wording in paragraph 3 of the letter, particularly as it has been shown to the Home Office, since it exposes unnecessarily the Governor's position. I should be grateful if the following could be substitued for the first two sentences:

'The Governor has made a strong case for a new British quota. He maintains this view but understands the difficulties that this raises for Ministers. He thus sees the immediate problem in terms of avoiding any suggestion to the Americans and others that we have made up our minds not to institute a new quota. He therefore recommends delaying a decision for as long as possible.'

The second sentence would need consequential amendment.

3.

The final paragraph of the draft letter itself could,

I suggest, be improved and shortened by deleting 'in completion

non-quota commitments' in the first sentence, and the deletion of the third sentence : 'On the other hand...

..criteria'.

•

Бир

R D Clift

15 December 1980

Hong Kong and General Department

CONFIDENTIAL

1