TNAG-1911-FCO40-2715-Financial-assistance-from-the-UK-Government-to-Vietnamese-re-1989 — Page 50

CONFIDENTIAL

B

New long term accommodation;

Expenditure in connection with mandatory repatriation (per capita payments, financial assistance to Vietnam and

monitoring expenditure).

4. The reason why we need to find substantial sums of money to

assist the Hong Kong Government in the construction of Boat People

camps is that, under present circumstances, the Hong Kong Government

does not feel able to go to the Finance Committee for further funds for Boat People. The Governor has made it clear (Hong Kong telnos 2923 and 3162) that there is no prospect of obtaining the

Finance Committee's approval for further expenditure until we have a regular programme of mandatory repatration in place. Hence the need to cover all the cost of the improvements to emergency accommodation from HMG's funds. Hong Kong judges that the approval

of Finance Committee could be forthcoming for funds for the long

term accommodation as a counterpart to a 50% contribution from us,

and on the assumption that mandatory repatriation starts soon.

5. It has taken us some time to get into the position where we can

with any confidence put a detailed proposal to the Treasury. This is because we have had to go through extensive and detailed exchanges with the Hong Kong Government about their future

accommodation r

in order to elicit a clear and convincing case

ry. These plans have undergone repeated

:

to put to the revisions but w are assured that they are now in final form.

6. Whereas the bids for funds for accommodation are based on

detailed plans, the bids for expenditure in connection with

mandatory repatriation are necessarily much more speculative. We have sufficient funds for per capita payments this financial year.

There is however a fairly urgent requirement for Treausry approval

for a figure for financial assistance to Vietnam, to enable us to begin to negotiate a non voluntary return programme with the

Vietnamese as soon as the first batch have been sent back (our

agreement with Vietnam only provided for one repatration operation). We have settled upon the figure of £5 million not for any objective

SAMACZ

CONFIDENTIAL