in Hong Kong have sparked off a lively debate in Hong Kong. That is a good thing. There can be no democracy without debate, and no debate without disagreement. There are some important issues at stake for Hong Kong's future. The Prime Minister and I strongly supported the proposals put forward by the Governor. They represent his best judgement of how to meet the wish for a broadening of democracy in a way which was consistent with the Joint Declaration, and the Basic Law.
Since the Governor set out his proposals, there has been criticism from some who think he went too far, and from others who think he did not go far enough. That is normal in an open society. Alternative suggestions are now emerging and being debated by the community, and by political groups. I hope that those who have specific thoughts to offer will put them forward. They can then be considered alongside all the other suggestions.
The Governor will be putting forward his legislative proposals after Chinese New Year. It is right that LegCo should have the responsibility to weigh up views in the community and decide where the balance lies. We will respect their judgement.
I know that there has been much unease in Hong Kong that the British and Chinese Governments have not yet been able to hold further talks on these issues as agreed during the Governor's visit to Peking in October. We would like to do so. As the
Governor has said, we have no preconditions for talks. We and
the Governor are ready for discussions at any time.
I have heard suggestions that we have changed our policy towards Hong Kong, and that we have joined some wider conspiracy against China. Both are plainly untrue. The whole world has an interest in China's open door policy and economic
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