TNAG-2731-FCO40-3937-Future-of-Hong-Kong-constitutional-development-1993 — Page 131

SECRET

1

974

123

MDHOAN

amendment. But having got themselves on the public hook that you must withdraw your proposals before they will agree to discussions, they might well find it more difficult to justify starting talks with us once your proposals were laid in LegCo in unamended form.

These are probably imponderable questions. We would be interested to have Sir R McLaren's thoughts. The second point

4.

above leads us to think that there could be advantage in prolonging discussion in ExCo for another two weeks or so rather than taking a firm decision one way or another on 2 February. Although that would prolong uncertainty in Hong Kong, it would give Lu Ping a maximum opportunity to respond to our suggestion of talks before we take a step which the Chinese might claim made it impossible for them to start talks.

HURD

YYYY

ΜΑΙΝ

.HK POLICY

HKD

PUSD

FED

64

DISTRIBUTION

64

NTCD

PLANNERS

RAD

LEGAL ADVISERS//MS BARRETT

./MS BROOKS AND MR GILES NEWS D

PS

PS/MR GOODLAD

SIR J COLES

MR HUM

NNNN

PAGE

SECRET

2