CONFIDENTIAL
31A)
CONFIDENTIAL
FM FCO
TO PRIORITY HONG KONG
TELNO 1983
OF 081815Z NOVEMBER 91
INFO PRIORITY UKREP JLG HONG KONG, PEKING
Put Mini Copy on Kong Legle
(not entered (to')
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151337
MDLOAN 8878
H23 01215
18
COURT OF FINAL APPEAL CCFA): THE WAY FORWARD
1. WE HAVE NOW CONSULTED MINISTERS ON THE WAY FORWARD IN THE LIGHT OF THE CONTROVERSY IN HONG KONG OVER THE AGREEMENT REACHED JLG. WE WILL TELEGRAPH SEPARATELY ON THE ISSUE OF A LEGAL OPINION ON THE ISSUE OF CONSISTENCY WITH THE JD/BL TO SET AGAINST THAT FROM SIR WILLIAM WADE.
2.
MINISTERS RECOGNISE THAT IF DRAFT LEGISLATION REFLECTING OUR AGREEMENT WITH THE CHINESE WERE PUT TO LEGCO NOW IT WOULD BE AMENDED OR REJECTED. IT WOULD BE USEFUL TO HAVE YOUR ASSESSMENT OF HOW WIDELY LEGCO'S VIEW IS SHARED IN THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY. IF OPPOSITION TO THE AGREEMENT WERE TO BECOME GENERAL IN THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY IT COULD BECOME A FACTOR IN INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS CONFIDENCE IN HONG KONG. ON THE OTHER HAND BUSINESSMEN MAY BE MORE SUSCEPTIBLE OVER TIME TO THE ARGUMENT THAT IT IS IN THEIR INTEREST TO HAVE THE CFA UP AND RUNNING BEFORE 1997 ON A BASIS THAT WILL BE SUSTAINED BEYOND
1997.
3. MINISTERS BELIEVE THAT THE RIGHT APPROACH IS TO PLAY THIS ISSUE LONG.
NOR DO THEY SEE THE
NEED FOR UNILATERAL ACTION WHICH WOULD JEOPARDISE FUTURE JLG CO-OPERATION. RATHER THEY SEE ADVANTAGE IN TAKING OUR TIME IN DRAFTING THE LEGISLATION TO ALLOW PASSIONS TO COOL, AND TO ENABLE HKG TO EXPLAIN MORE FULLY TO THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY AND OTHER OPINION FORMERS THE ADVANTAGES OF AN AGREEMENT REACHED IN THE JLG, AND THE LACK OF ANY REALISTIC ALTERNATIVE. A FULLY ROUNDED PROPOSITION IN THE FORM OF A FLESHED-OUT DRAFT ORDINANCE SHOULD PROVIDE A USEFUL RALLYING POINT EVENTUALLY, BUT THERE IS NO NEED TO CONCEDE ANY FURTHER POINTS TO PEKING IN THE DRAFTING.
THIS WOULD SUGGEST THE FOLLOWING GAME PLAN FOR HANDLING THE ISSUE OVER THE NEXT FEW MONTHS:
Redacted under FOI exemption section 27(1)
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