5. In the light of your brief, I had a preliminary word with both Sir Richard Francis and Mr John Hanson about our reservations on British Council participation in the proposed Educational Trust in Hong Kong (referred to also in paragraph 7.26 of the Corporate Plan, which was also taken at today's meeting). In the light of my earlier comments to him, Mr Hanson proposed that the Board should today merely be asked to agree that management should "take steps forward towards the Trust". It was acknowledged at the meeting that further discussion would be required between the British Council, the Treasury and ourselves.
6.
In the course of reports on Board members' travels overseas, Sir David Orr referred to the British Council's representation in Hong Kong, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta, and commented on the particularly good relationship which their representatives enjoyed both with the ODA and with Diplomatic Missions. Since Mr Lankester had left by this point, he may like to note this very warm tribute.
7.
In the final discussion on British Council staff moves, it was explained that Mr Michael Ward (grade A) would be filling the British Council's representation in Germany on an interim basis for one year, to be succeeded thereafter by an officer in grade B. Mr George Robertson questioned whether this was sensible, in view of the priority which should be given to Germany, particularly after unification. I asked whether the respective grades of British Council officers were public knowledge; if they were, I agreed that there might, on the face of it, be a presentational disadvantage in appearing to downgrade British Council representation in Germany at this time. An inconclusive discussion followed, during which Sir Richard Francis explained that there were very few officers in grade A, and that operational needs suggested that the one available grade A should go to Tokyo rather than Germany. He made it clear nevertheless that the pattern of future representation in Germany was likely to have to be reviewed in the light of unification. I later told Sir Richard Francis privately that we were ourselves undertaking a review, with Sir Christopher Mallaby, of our own future representation, and that we would be happy to keep in touch with the British Council on this. I hoped that Sir Christopher Mallaby himself would have taken the British Council's needs into account in drawing up his own
recommendations.
RW2AAZ
Patrick Wright
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