TNAG-1419-FCO40-1902-Hong-Kong-Parliamentary-Sub-Committee-on-Race-Relations-and--1985 — Page 233

00 UKMIS GENEVA

GPS300

CONFIDENTIAL

CONFIDENTIAL

FROM F C O 131156Z AUG 85.

TO IMMEDIATE UKMIS GENEVA

TELEGRAM NUMBER 183 OF 13 AUGUST.

チ

1586 1

MKKC 243/2

|-RECEIVED IN REGISTRY

13 AUG 1935

DESK OFFICER.

14DEX

REGISTRY

Action Taken

же

―

FOLLOWING TELEGRAM NOW REPEATED TO YOU AT REQUEST OF HKD

WAS SENT TO HONG KONG TELEGRAM NUMBER 1041 OF 19 JULY.

INFO HANOI.

FRIN HKD

YOUR TELNO 1457: VIETNAMESE REFUGEES: SCORRI REPORT.

1. THE HOME SECRETARY'S REPLY TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE WAS

RECEIVED ON 16 JULY. STRICTLY FOR OWN INFORMATION IT DOES

PROPOSE THAT A REPLY TO SCORRI BE DELAYED UNTIL AFTER THE RECESS.

IT ALSO REVEALS THAT THE HOME SECRETARY IS PREPARED TO ACCEPT THE

FAMILY REUNION CASES AS PROPOSED BY SCORRI, BUT NOT TO GO

FURTHER. WE UNDERSTAND THAT HOME OFFICE MINISTERS HAVE SPOKEN TO

THE CHAIRMAN OF SCORRI ABOUT THE DELAY, THOUGH WE WERE NOT

CONSULTED ABOUT IT. LEAKS ABOUT THE DELAY MAY HAVE DERIVED FROM

THIS. MR BIFFEN'S REMARKS WERE ABOUT A DEBATE ON THE SCORRI REPORT

AND NOT SPECIFICALLY ABOUT THE TIMING OF A REPLY. A DEBATE DOES NOT

NECESSARILY HAVE TO FOLLOW THE OFFICIAL REPLY FROM HMG, AND

THE TIMING OF ANY SUCH DEBATE HAS NO DIRECT IMPLICATIONS FOR THE

TIMING OF A REPLY.

2. WE ARE FULLY AWARE OF THE CONSIDERATIONS IN PARA 4 OF YOUR

TUR AND ARE RECOMMENDING THAT THE SECRETARY OF STATE SHOULD

RETURN TO THE CHARGE WITH THE HOME SECRETARY.

3. WHILE THESE MATTERS ARE UNDER DISCUSSION BETWEEN THE HOME

SECRETARY AND THE FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH SECRETARY IT IS

ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL THAT IN TALKING TO THE PRESS IN HONG KONG

YOU DO NOT GO BEYOND SAYING THAT YOU UNDERSTAND THAT BOTH THE

TIMING AND THE CONTEXT OF THE REPLY TO SCORRI ARE STILL UNDER

DISCUSSION BETWEEN MINISTERS IN LONDON, AND THAT FIRM DECISIONS

1

CONFIDENTIAL