TNAG-1718-FCO40-2398-Hong-Kong-1987-Review-of-Representative-Government-1988 — Page 159

SECRET

1991, I said that a number of considerations had pointed towards that number. The most important of them was probably the fact that two out of the three options under consideration for the Basic Law had 25% of the post-1997 legislature directly elected. If that was the final number it seemed prudent to build up gradually towards it.

There would be an option to increase the proportion at the 1994 elections.

3. Mr Heath asked what other changes were being made to the membership of the Legislative Council. I explained what they were. Mr Heath expressed some criticism of the retention of appointed members. He also doubted the wisdom of keeping indirectly elected members, apparently on the ground that the Joint Declaration would prevent the continuation of indirectly elected members after 1997. I said that the Joint Declaration provided only that the Legislature of the SAR should be constituted by direct elections. It did not specify what kind of elections. I added that functional constituencies had proved popular in Hong Kong which was why the proportion of LEGCO chosen inthis way would be slightly icnreased in 1988.

4

·

At one point I referred to Mr Martin Lee's recent visits to London and their apparent impact on the thinking of some MPs. Mr Heath commented that he had not met Mr Lee before his most recent visit and had not himself been influenced by him. We should not be SO mesmerised by Mr Lee that we failed to notice the extent to which his general views were shared by others in Hong Kong.

5.

We also discussed briefly the Public Order Ordinances issue and in particular the "false news provision.

f!

I told Mr Heath that there would be a review later this year during which the need for that provision and others could be looked at again. Mr Heath thought that the Hong Kong Government had made a major blunder in transferring the "false news" provision to the Public Order Ordinances. They had been listening to the wrong people again. I pointed out that there had been a strong opinion in LEGCO in favour of keeping the provision. It had been the media which had made a fuss.

6. At the end of our discussion I emphasised again the sensitivity of the information which the Secretary of State had given to Mr Heath and reminded him that the White Paper was not being published until 10 February. Mr Heath said he fully understood. He would in any case be preoccupied with business appointments up to 10 February.

SECRET

/ COMMENT