TNAG-1472-FCO40-2003-Ministerial-visits-from-the-UK-to-Hong-Kong-1986 — Page 45

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MS HUTCHEON:

Mr Waddington, the British Government

almost exactly a year ago agreed to take 500 refugees from Hong Kong.

That period has now expired. It is due to expire in October.

Is it more than a coincidence that you have timed your visit to

Hong Kong now ? Are you planning to re-consider the quota and to continue to take more refugees from Hong Kong ?

MINISTER: No, you mustn't relate the timing of this visit to the fact that we have now nearly taken in the 500 who

we undertook to take in last year, but this is a continuing

responsibility of mine and I thought it was high time I came to Hong Kong; in fact, I found myself in the invidious position of

answering questions in the House of Commons when almost everybody else

in the place seemed to have been to Hong Kong and seen that about which

I was replying to questions. So I think my visit has been too long

just to that. The facts you

delayed. But you mustn't relate it have stated are absolutely right. The fact is that we have nearly

got to the end of taking in that quota, if you want to call it a

quota, of 500 that we agreed to take and now, of course, it is a

question of my going back and with colleagues discussing what, if

anything, we can do next.

MS HUTCHEON: What will you be saying when you go back ?

MINISTER: Ah, I am not going to tell you that. I am going to give my colleagues my impressions and we must talk over the whole matter in great depth.

MS HUTCHEON: Can you elaborate a bit more ?

MINISTER:

I can't really elaborate very much more on that

because I want to make it absolutely plain that obviously I was not in a position to come out here and make decisions; I wasn't in a

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