TNAG-2738-FCO40-3951-Hong-Kong-Letters-Patent-1993-1993 — Page 169

CODE 18-77

Mr Herdman WIAD

PA letters

&

fater

REPRINTING OF COLONIAL REGULATIONS

49

Reference..

1. I refer to our recent telephone conversation in which you told me that you were unlikely to commence the exercise to reprint the Colonial Regulations (CRs) until July.

2.

We need to submit to the Secretary of State about two separate changes to the CRS. One is an amendment to CR 66 to take account of the Secretary of State's agreement in June 1991 that the number of appointment and discipline cases in Hong Kong that needed to be referred to the FCO for approval should be reduced. The other includes an amendment to CR 54 (6) of Appendix II and to CR65 which are needed before Hong Kong can enact a Judicial Officers (Tenure of Office) Bill to provide separate provisions for the discipline and removal of judicial officers. This bill also necessitates some amendments to the Letters Patent. These amendments are due to be put to the Privy Council on 20 July. If the amendments to the Letters Patent need to come into force before the corresponding amendment to the CRS, then we will not be able to amend the CRS before the end of July. I will however check with Hong Kong whether it is possible to amend the CRS before the Letters Patent.

3. If this is not possible, I would be grateful if you could let me know how this will affect your timetable. We would obviously like to include these amendments into the re-printed version if possible. Please could you also let me know whether you intend to submit the draft of the reprinted version of the CRS to the Secretary of State and if so, whether you think it would be possible for us to ask for the Secretary of State's approval for the above amendments within the context of your submission or whether you think it would be simpler for us to submit separately on these points.

&fuis

Bridget Paris

Hong Kong Department

WH303

2702652

27 May 1993

HKCB 072/5

15 JUN 1993

1