TNAG-1175-FCO40-1477-Proposed-replacement-airport-for-Hong-Kong-at-Deep-Bay-or-Ch-1982 — Page 70

CONFIDENTIAL

Foreign and Commonwealth Office London SW1A 2AH

RP Margolis Esq

Deputy Political Adviser

HONG KONG

REPLACEMENT AIRPORT

Telephone 01- 233 4439

33

Your reference

Our reference

Date

there that!

HKK 182/1

3 August 1982

See(37

冗

Tifs to Plus 318-

226

attached to (32)

1.

In his letter (11) TS 7/82 of 12 July to Dick Clift, Robin McLaren mentioned at the end of paragraph 1 that no press statement was issued following the EXCO discussion on replacement airport on 18 May.

2.

attached to (23)

We were a bit surprised, therefore, to see in the Hong Kong Government's daily News Roundup of 30 June that: 'Studies on the building of a replacement airport at Chek Lap Kok are moving into their final phase. All the feasibility studies are due to be completed by the end of the year and the results presented to the Government in early 1983 for a decision on whether to go ahead'. The same line was repeated in the 16 July edition of the broadsheet put out by the HKGO here.

3.

It may be that this line is being pushed hard by the Civil Aviation Department, but it does seem to us somewhat premature for the Government to be going out of its way to publicise this at the present time, particularly as John Bremridge has recently been quoted as saying that no decision will be made until 1984. It would be helpful to have your views.

cc:

RJ F Hoare

Hong Kong and General Department

M W Atkinson Esq, Peking

CONFIDENTIAL