TNAG-1082-FCO40-1332-Implications-for-Hong-Kong-of-changes-in-the-British-nationa-1981 — Page 30

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Mr Adams

Adams

CONFIDENTIAL

Meeting with Mr Raison

I attach a draft record of this morning's meeting with Mr Raison which you attended. I think we should try to get this to the Home Office fairly rapidly, and would be grateful if you could iron out any technical errors and then ask Nationality and Treaty Department to produce and distribute the record in final form.

Lord

I had a further word with Lord Carrington after the meeting about the Home Office proposal that Mr Whitelaw should write to Sir Murray MacLehose. Carrington thought that we should reconsider the advisability of this after his own visit to Hong Kong, when he has agreed to speak to the Governor. If Mr Whitelaw's letter is intended only for the Governor's personal guidance, Lord Carrington's conversation with Sir Murray MacLehose should suffice. If the letter is intended for wider distribution eg to the Unofficials, Lord Carrington is concerned that it could reopen the controversy. In the draft record I have expressed the Secretary of State's agreement to the despatch of a letter in deliberately conditional terms: and you may wish to ensure that Home Office officials do not try to move too rapidly on this. Mr Donald did of course emphasise that our agreement was only that a letter should be sent at the appropriate time.

26 March 1981

cc:

Mr Donald

PS/Mr Luce

RM JLyme

(R M J Lyne)

CONFIDENTIAL

15

I agree

but the Home

office May argue that they want a confidential letter to

record Ite

positii '"for histry?! W.JA.

31/3

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