TNAG-1802-FCO40-2562-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-refugees-resettlement-in-the-UK-1988 — Page 154

From the Private Secretary

CONFIDENTIAL

ET MON

10 DOWNING STREET

LONDON SWIA 2AA

MKD 243/12

Hong Kong App

Caps

Ps/ Card Cutter Rs/tc fogar

5 December 1988

Dear Bob,

VIETNAMESE BOAT PEOPLE

KONG

M fillmore M. Melaree

SGAD

ило

IN HONG KONG: RESETTLEMENT

AN

The Prime Minister has considered the joint minute from the Foreign Secretary and the Home Secretary dated 1 December proposing that we should accept the resettlement in this country of a further 1,000 Vietnamese boat people over the next two-and-a-half years, as part of a wider effort to resettle remaining boat people in Hong Kong.

we

The Prime Minister points out the great difficulty which Vietnamese boat people find in settling in this country and adapting to our way of life, with the result that they tend to become a burden on the social services. At the same time, still refuse to make special arrangements to allow business people from Hong Kong, who want to come here and who would actually help to create jobs, to acquire British citizenship. In her view, we should help to alleviate the problem which taking the Vietnamese boat people will create by facilitating citizenship for Hong Kong business people. Otherwise we just end up with the short end of the stick.

The Prime Minister has already asked the Home Secretary to produce a paper on this latter point. She would like to consider the two issues in parallel and reach decisions on both at the same time.

I am copying this letter to Philip Mawer (Home Office), Alex Allan (HM Treasury), Roger Bright (Department of the Environment), Clive Norris (Department of Employment), Myles Wickstead (Overseas Development Administration) and to Sir Robin Butler.

march,

збіль

C. D. POWELL

سه

гъвай

R. N. Peirce, Esq.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

CONFIDENTIAL