TNAG-1557-FCO40-2121-Future-of-Hong-Kong-nationality-and-passports-Hong-Kong-(Br-1986 — Page 108

CONFIDENTIAL

4.

An Order in Council made under the Hong Kong Act 1985 is necessary to

implement this agreement. The Order is to be made under the affirmative

resolution procedure. But once laid, it can either be approved or rejected

by the House; it cannot be amended.

5.

Understandably, the details of the Order are of great concern in Hong

Kong, and the nationality provisions were the subject of the bulk of the

debates in Parliament on the agreement and on the Hong Kong Bill. To meet

this concern, it was agreed that a draft of a draft Order (described as

"an Order with green edges") should be submitted to Parliament for full

debate. The Government would then consider whether or not the points made

during the debates called for any changes to be made in the draft, insofar

as these were consistent with the Hong Kong Act. The re-draft would then

be presented for approval in the normal way.

6. The Government stated during the course of the debate on the Bill that

it was the intention to make the Order within a year of the Passage of the

Bill (that is by April 1986). In order to meet this target date it is intended

to re-present the draft Order, amended as necessary in the light of the

debates, to Parliament fairly early in the New Year.

7. Both the White Paper and the draft Order have been agreed with FCO,

and with Hong Kong officials, and with the Executive Council of Hong Kong.

The Order was debated in the Hong Kong Legislative Council on 4 December 1985.

Speakers made a number of proposals which are covered in the report from

the Governor attached to Mr Renton's letter of

attached.

8. Judging from the points made during the earlier debates, and the

representations made since April, the major issues which members are likely

to raise during the debates are:

a)

the position of non-ethnic Chinese BDTCs in Hong Kong and their

descendants

b) the acceptability of BN(0) passports to third countries

c)

the right of abode endorsement to be entered in BN (0) passports.

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