TNAG-2333-FCO40-3394-Future-of-Hong-Kong-Hong-Kong-Court-of-Final-Appeal-Hong-Ko-1991 — Page 74

LORD

PRESIDENT

OF THE

COUNCIL

[HKC370/8

¡Q JUN 1991

CONFIDENTIAL

0.1.

Mr. Berman, Legal Admocio

ھر

رم

PS/ hord Caithness Si J Coles of

PRIVY COUNCIL OFFICE

24

WHITEHALL, LONDON SW1A 2AT

24 May 1991 Term to HK.

Mr. Buns (Mr. Paul (tr)

Ra

to replace

Я

24

Dew Dougly,

LEGISLATIVE PROGRAMME 1991-92

23

Thank you for your

letter of 8 May about the FCO candidates for inclusion in the 1991-92 legislative programme. I was grateful for the information you provided on the various contingent bids.

As you know, when they discussed the legislative programme for 1991/92 last February, the Cabinet asked FLG to review the provisional programme in order to identify some politically attractive candidates for a fifth Session. You will see from my separate minute to the Prime Minister that, in addition to a comprehensive Local Government Finance Bill next Session, the Committee consider that an Asylum Bill, and Education Bills both for England and Wales and for Scotland should be added to the provisional programme.

Inevitably these additions have had to be accompanied by offsetting savings, and I have had to advise a number of colleagues who were originally awarded places in the programme that their Bills will have to be dropped.

Against this background the FLG considered your request for the Hong Kong (Appeals) Bill to be added to the programme. While they accepted that the Bill might not attract the same degree of interest as the British Nationality Bill last Session, they remained concerned about the risk of domestic controversy in a fifth Session, and were not persuaded that the Bill has to proceed on the timetable you propose. For these reasons they were not prepared to recommend to the Cabinet its inclusion in a fifth Session programme though they have recommended its inclusion on X the list of further preparatory work for a first Session.

CONFIDENTIAL