TNAG-2209-FCO40-3169-Future-of-Hong-Kong-principal-officials-1991 — Page 39

香港總督府

Secret

Dear Peter,

SECRET

Copy: M. Burns

Mr Cox

Mr Stone

Mr Wye, Myself.

HKCB 010/5

GOVERNMENT HOUSE

HONG KONG

9 December 1991

RAD

18/12

What the Governor achatky said was Hal this paper

was not very satisfactory

and Hal M. Sze was

M. Sze was to re-write

sahsfactory and Hal

Principal Officials il

10

it well illustrates the

quif Jetween He two sides on continuity of senior officials.

As the Governor mentioned to you at your meeting on 5 December, we discussed this subject at an internal meeting last Friday. Michael Sze will now be digging out the old 1989 papers on the "concentric circles" approach and bringing them up-to-date. The Governor will probably want to discuss this revised paper before he sees Lu Ping on 6 January.

We will of course send you a copy of that paper once we have it in a form we are happy with. In the meantime, you may be interested to read the attached CPU analysis of the Chinese Government's attitude towards the general subject of continuity in the civil service. This is of course only a think-piece, and has no official status. Some of those present at the meeting thought it represented a rather pessimistic view of Chinese attitudes. But it does certainly provide a valuable warning that we should not take anything for granted.

Your ever,

Ribei

Schult

12/12

(R.J.F. Hoare)

Private Secretary

Mr. P. Ricketts

Hong Kong Department

Foreign & Commonwealth Office

SECRET