In its back page lead on January 3, Sing Tao Jih Pao said the visit to China by Mr. tkins, who was also Deputy Foreign Secretary, was expected to bring about a breakthrough on the issue of the New Territories lease and thus dispel worries among local residents and investors. Political commentators were convinced that Britain had already prepared a strategic policy that would bring about a solution to the 1997 issue acceptable to China, the UK and Hong Kong, the paper said. It also observed that Mr. Atkins had indicated recently in the House of Commons that economic co-operation between China and Hong Kong was progressing steadily. In fact, since the 1960's, Mr. Atkins had been actively involved in an ad hoc committee set up by Parliament to study the NT lease question, it noted.
Sing Tao's report was promptly picked up by other papers. Meanwhile, most papers covered Mr. Atkins's arrival on January 3 in brief reports the following day, with some of them carrying a picture showing the Governor's aide-de-camp, Mr. S.P. Corrick, greeting the visitor at Kai Tak airport.
In caption stories on January 5, many papers reported that Mr. Atkins departed for China the previous day. In addition, the left-wing papers quoted agency despatches from Beijing as saying that the Lord Privy Seal had arrived in the Chinese capital and was expected to meet Chinese leaders.
In an exclusive report, Sing Tao Jih Pao said a major mission for Mr. Atkins during his Hong Kong visit was to ask the local Government to amend its immigration laws to bring them into line with the provisions of the new Nationality Act. Meanwhile, the Express said in an inside page lead that local residents were most concerned whether Mr. Atkins would raise the question of the NT lease with the Chinese leaders during his stay in Beijing. They also expected him to explain to Chinese leaders why Sir Edward Youde was chosen to be the next Hong Kong Governor.
On January 6, two major left-wing papers Wen Wei Po and Ta Kung Pao - accorded prominent coverage to a statement by Chinese Vice-Premier Ji Pengfei at a banquet in Beijing the previous evening held in honour of Mr. Atkins. There were broad and bright prospects for further development of Sino-British relations, Mr. Ji was quoted as saying.
Mr. Atkins's statement to reporters in Beijing on January 6 after his hour-long meeting with the Chinese Prime Minister, Mr. Zhao Ziyang, was extensively reported in the local Press the following day. The news was used as either the front, back or inside page lead in ten papers. While some papers noted that the Lord Privy Seal had held three meetings with Chinese leaders on the question of Hong Kong's future, others emphasised that China was not yet ready to offer any concrete proposals on the matter. Nevertheless, the Chinese leaders realised that time was moving on and "if nothing at all is done there will come a time when confidence will be damaged", the papers quoted Mr. Atkins as saying. His announcement that the Prime Minister, Mrs. Thatcher, would visit Beijing in late September was played up by several paers in headlines. They also mentioned that Britain had asked for a review of an air services agreement in March or April to examine airline connections, mainly between China and Hong Kong.
Commenting on the facts divulged by Mr. Atkins, Dr. Joseph Cheng of the Chinese University told Sing Tao Wan Pao that China was unlikely to achieve a breakthrough on the 1997 issue within the next two years. The country would, however, hopefully tackle the problem at an earlier date if Hong Kong people showed their concern over the territory's prospects, he said. In any case, it was an improvement that China had come to realise that "time was moving on" and that mere verbal assurances could not set investors' minds at ease, he later told the Express.
In routine reports on January 8, the papers said Mr. Atkins would be in Hong Kong again, having completed his visit to China. Quoting an "authoritative source who has influence on Government policies", the Hong Kong Economic Journal added that the Lord Privy Seal's China trip was mainly aimed at paving the way for Mrs. Thatcher's forthcoming visit to the country. The evening papers promptly covered his arrival at Kai Tak in the morning and quoted him as describing his China trip as a "pleasant" one.
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