CONFIDENTIAL
6.
We have considered carefully how large a commitment
we should make, taking into account the capacity of our
reception facilities and statutory services, and the numbers needed to stimulate the right response from the major reception countries. In May 1987 (when the number
of boat people in Hong Kong was a third of what it is
now) we gave a commitment to resettle 468 named refugees
from Hong Kong over two years, at a rate of about 20 a
month. The voluntary agencies argue that they could cope with 60 a month. We are more cautious; the agencies have no recent experience of this rate of reception. therefore recommend 40 a month, over a period of 2 years
amounting to an additional commitment of 1,000.
Details of a possible package on these lines are set out in an annex to this minute.
We
7. We have in the past had problems with resettling boat people in this country and such problems are not going to
disappear entirely. Some housing agencies will not
welcome the additional demand. But we believe that with
the selection measures proposed, an expansion of language training in Hong Kong, and use of the Employment Training programme, old problems can be reduced.
8. We estimate that the Home Office vill need up to £0.5 million in each year for grant aid to voluntary organisations working with these refugees. They will of course use existing statutory services on the basis of
need. The burden falling on any one service from 480 arrivals a year will not be great. Moreover the proposed
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