TNAG-1284-FCO40-1636-Constitutional-development-in-Hong-Kong-1984 — Page 228

127

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15/5/4

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I have

HKK 011/3.

RECE.VED IN

STRY

16 MAY 1984

DESK OPEN

INDEX

NO

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PS/Mr Jace Minjoks

CONFIDENTIAL

Mr Elif HRD

Thank you. དེང་པས་

FROM: R D CLIFT

alled M, Hum le ricker

DATE:

15 May 1984

CC:

SIR

DR WILSON

P

reference le khi in to

Luce's mid-up

CRADOCK Speech (from

бреесь

MR ORR (FED)

Mrs Klowak

CONSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN HONG KONG

has seen

1615

1. Hong Kong telno 1324 gives the text of a speech that the Secretary of Home Affairs will make in the Legislative Council on 16 May. The speech summarises the public comments received on the proposals outlined by Sir P Haddon-Cave in his speech in the Council on 15 February and states how the Government intends to proceed in the light of these.

2.

(a)

(b)

The main proposals made by Sir P Haddon-Cave were:

that the representative status of the District Boards should be strengthened by increasing the size of the elected element:

that in some large and complex districts, such as Tsuen Wan, it might be desirable to create more District Boards to serve smaller geographical areas;

(c) that consideration should be given to

developing the urban management role of the District Boards; and

(a)

that a new Regional Council should be set up to cover those areas not under the aegis of the Urban Council, that the opportunity should possibly be taken to re-align the regional boundaries, and that the provision of some of the services presently provided by the Recreation and

Culture Department should be brought within

the purview of the two Councils.

A

The Hong Kong Government has made few changes to its original proposals. The most controversial of these was to set up a second Regional Council for the New Territories rather than extending the jurisdiction of the existing Urban Council. Despite the opposition of the Urban Council, the Government is perservering with its original intention, largely because of the strength of feeling in the New Territories. (The other main reasons, not for public consumption, is that we are afraid that the Chinese might object to a single Council covering the whole of the territory. This would in any

CONFIDENTIAL