advice on immigration matters and work permits. The precise purpose of
the meeting he now seeks with the Secretary of State for Mr Coppel is not
entirely clear, but it would appear to be aimed at getting the Secretary
of State's support for his plans to "market" the UK to Chinese
businessmen.
He may hope that by securing such support it will ease the
path for his potential clients and their families to obtain work permits
and the right of permanent residence here.
The Governments's policy is to welcome manufacturing investment from
Inward
overseas where this is of overall benefit to the UK economy.
investment from Hong Kong in the UK is not very significant in comparison
Sino Vickish
with that from other countries.
The Anglo/Chinese agreement of 1984 on
the future of Hong Kong has largely halted the movement of escapist
capital overseas and a mood of confidence has returned to Hong Kong.
Nevertheless, the need to develop and protect international markets,
especially the UK market, will continue to prompt a few businessmen to
establish factories abroad, especially in the garment industry. Any
active encouragement by HMG to Hong Kong industry to set up in the UK,
however, raises the possibility of friction for us with the Peking
government. The Invest in Britain Bureau therefore does not actively
campaign in Hong Kong and confines itself to acting responsively.
I do not think it is necessary for the Secretary of State to see Mr
Coppel: the prospects for any significant Hong Kong Chinese manufacturing
investment in the UK are not good: there is moreover the potential risk to
our relations with the Chinese government from being seen to give any
encouragement to Mr Coppels plans. He may also wish to go further into
the conditions relating to the issue of work and UK residence permits for
high level
No comments yet.
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