TNAG-1560-FCO40-2124-Future-of-Hong-Kong-nationality-and-passports-Hong-Kong-(Br-1986 — Page 18

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understands the view reflected in your submission that it might not be wholly unacceptable for the Order to be defeated in the Lords on this point, thereby clearly

But he believes obliging you to change your views on it. that this would be extremely damaging in Hong Kong terms. The impression would be created that HMG was malevolent towards Hong Kong and that Hong Kong was being saved only by a beneficent Parliament. This would seriously damage There would HMG's standing and reputation in Hong Kong.

be a considerable price to pay for sustaining a defeat in the Lords. We should therefore have some reassurance from the business managers in the Lords that there is at least a very good chance of getting the legislation through, without making concessions to the ethnic minorities, before finally accepting what is proposed.

In this context we do not think that it would be wise to argue in Parliament that concessions should not be made to the Indians because of the large number of those who might be able to put themselves in a position to benefit from such a concession. If we do this, it will be pointed out immediately in Hong Kong that they are not requesting such a wide-ranging concession, and would be content to have restrictions placed on any concession to the Indians in such a way that it would

We would apply only to those who are already 3DTCs. undoubtedly be accused in Hong Kong of being dishonest (just as we were in relation to the briefing document circulated previously by the Whips) For this reason Mr Renton fears that this argument could rebound against the Government in Parliament. He would therefore prefer our arguments to be based on those already deployed in Parliament, and on the need for consistency with the principles of the BNA.

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Mr Renton wonders however if it would not help to give some more quotable reassurance about the future of the minorities: as you will recall this was hinted at by more than one Conservative back bencher during the Commons debate on the draft Order. Would it for instance be possible to say that the Government does not consider that it would be appropriate to amend the Order now in such a way as to give British citizenship to the minority communities, since it believes that the Joint Declaration is entirely sufficient to safeguard their interests: if however at any future stage it appeared that that was not the case, then the Government considered that a future government would have to reconsider the possibility very seriously. This would, it is true, make it difficult for a future government not to review the position, but it would not actually commit them to taking the action

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/specified.