TNAG-2195-FCO40-3132-Hong-Kong-nationality-package-1990 — Page 84

FROM HONG KONG BILL UNIT

04.19.1990 11:12

NO. 2

P. 7

6.

Mr Speaker, it would not have been reasonable to ask the House

to approve an enabling Bill such as this without revealing how

the Government envisaged that the resulting powers would be used.

I therefore turn now to the explanatory note which I have laid

before the House describing the selection scheme which the

Government has in mind and which is the product of extensive

discussions with the Hong Kong Government and based on principles

originally proposed by them.

The scheme we envisage would be divided into four separate

sections. 72% of the 50,000 places would be allocated under a

general section, open to people from a wide range of walks of

life who had a key role in maintaining Hong Kong's prosperity and

successful administration. They would come from the following

seven broad areas of work: business and management; accounting;

engineering; information services; medicine and science; law;

and education. The distribution of places to the various

occupational groups within these broad areas would take account

of the rate at which their members were emigrating, to focus the

assurances where the need is greatest.

A number of places would be set aside for other technically or

professionally qualified people, who don't fit neatly into the

listed occupational groups but who perform essential functions.