TNAG-1845-FCO40-2620-House-of-Commons-Select-Committee-on-Foreign-Affairs-enquiry-1989 — Page 56

CODE 18-77

JAYAGD

Mr

Payi

Mr MacLaren

W3573

Many chunky

Reference.......

FAC Jul 228

Miss Marson

Wo

FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE ENQUIRY : INFORMAL BRIEFING SESSION ON 6 APRIL

•

I have now spoken to the Assistant Committee Clerk about the Committee's plans for the informal briefing session on 6 April. briefing will be held in Committee Room 6 from 10-11.30.

2. The Clerk told me that the Committee would like the oral briefing session to cover the following subjects:-

(i) Relationship between the FCO and the HKG

The

The powers given to the HKG; where responsibility lies; the chain of command; the Governor's ultimate responsibility to the Foreign Secretary - what this means in practice; why FCO officials are appointed Governors of Hong Kong etc.

(ii) How Hong Kong is governed internally

How Exco and Legco work and their relationship to each other; how they relate to the Urban and Regional Councils, the District Boards etc; how Hong Kong is run on a day to day basis; how the process of in formal consultation works in practice, including the role of prominent businessmen. (The Clerk acknowledged that some of this material had already been covered in the HKG's memorandum; he suggested that the briefing should concentrate on how the system works in practice. But it would do no harm to go over some of the ground in the memorandum again since the Committee always found it easier to absorb oral briefing than written material).

(iii) Localisation of Hong Kong Civil Service and Hong Kong Police

Policy on expatriate appointments at senior levels; how the HKG is going about localisation; what pressures this is putting on the Civil Service, etc.

(iv) China and Hong Kong

The organisational structure in China and key personalities dealing with Hong Kong; areas of particular sensitivity for

the Chinese.

(v) Other issues

Basic Law (depending on which members of the Committee are present)

Articles 159/157 (if Ivan Lawrence is present)

Article 19

HKB 011/3

(if Peter Temple-Morris is present)

/Additional