TNAG-2231-FCO40-3203-Visits-by-David-Wilson--Governor-of-Hong-Kong--to-the-UK-and-1991 — Page 21

G.F. 82

File No.

CONFIDENTIAL

NOTE FOR FILE

Page

Governor's Visit to Australia

8 to 15 May 1991

Meeting with the Joint Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade on 13 May 1991

Chairman,

Michael

Mackellar,

MP

The Deputy chaired the Joint Parliamentary Committee's meeting with the Governor (list of attendees attached). The following points were raised :-

Kong's

future

and

(a) The Governor briefed members of the Committee on the purpose of his visit to Australia. He said that it was

to important

put adverse media reports about Hong Kong in context. There was a paradox between genuine concerns about Hong

the economic dynamism of the territory. He said that there was a need to explain the arrangements being put in

for the transition in 1997. place outlined key elements of those provisions. emphasized the need to keep the economy buoyant so that it remained attractive to Hong Kong people

to China. valuable relationship with There was

(b)

that also

a

and

working important.

a

He

He

He said China was burden of

misunderstanding on both sides. The Chinese leadership deeply mistrusted capitalists and saw Hong Kong as a colonial enclave run by the British. Dealing with them

been more had difficult since June 1989.

Mr Mackellar said that the Governor had given a fairly optimistic portrait of Hong Kong and asked about China's attempts to interfere with the administration of Hong Kong. The Governor said that he was not intending to distort the picture. Hong Kong faced real problems and the brain drain was now about 62,000 a year of which about half were in employment; of these, half again were managers. He said that he did believe that China would break the JD. His concern was that they would seek economic advantage from

not

Chinese wanted

affecting Hong would

slow

the SAR. In the meantime, the to be consulted on decisions Kong, but giving them a veto decision-making

HKG by

very

significantly. We had to keep Peking informed but could not allow them veto power.

CONFIDENTIAL