CONFIDENTIAL
assurance that as a last resort they were free to settle in the UK. In this way they might be encouraged to remain in Hong Kong, for the moment The Commons Foreign Affairs Committee would certainly be recommending change in current immigration regulations for Hong Kong BDTCS, even if they did not come out in favour of 'passports for
all'.
20. Mr Moody noted that 80% of Gibraltarians possessed UK citizenship which they saw merely as an insurance policy, most of them remaining in the Territory. Mr Wood agreed pointed out though that in Hong Kong's case far greater numbers were involved. Miss Eddis observed that WIAD had been taken aback by the report on the Chevening seminar. Policy-makers should be aware of the likely reaction in the Caribbean DTs to any concession made over Hong Kong. BDTCS in the Caribbean were eagerly awaiting 1997 when they assumed that any concessions accorded to Hong Kong would be extended to the smaller DTs as well. Mr January noted that the Chief Minister of Montserrat had raised this very issue in March, and the Deputy Governor of BVI had reported on the confusion on UK nationality and
Mr Turner passport policy among inhabitants of that Territory. pointed out that this problem was not confined to the DTs for which WIAD was responsible. There were also a few BDTCs in Mauritius.
Item 7 Postage Stamp Frauds
21. Mr Moody spoke to the paper which he had circulated (copy attached). He was now more optimistic on this matter. Two types of fraud had been committed, relating to over-runs, and varieties and errors. Several different printers and distributors were involved. The police were likely to concentrate their investigations on the fraudulent Falklands and Gibraltar issues, but they had not yet decided precisely who would be prosecuted. A meeting would be held soon with the Crown Agents Philatelic Company (CAPHCO). Departments should advise DT governments that individuals (eg Managing Director
of CAPHCO), rather than organisations, were corrupt. The police had
given CAPHCO a clean bill of health. The fraud problem would probably prove self-resolving. DTs should be discouraged from
tracing back their issues over the last decade to check if they had
PJ5AAD/9
CONFIDENTIAL
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.