TNAG-2933-FCO40-4208-Future-of-Hong-Kong-nationality-British-National-(Overseas)-1993 — Page 19

JA-JUN-123)

LET

PERSONAL AND CONFIDENTIAL

香港總督府

H

жко забі

-

By Fax

(071 273 3596)

C 8 JUN 1993

232 981 1988

P.OZ

142

GOVERNMENT HOUSE

HONG KONG

4 June 1993

Dear Patrick,

HONG KONG : LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL DELEGATION TO LONDON : 7-10 JUNE

The Governor thought you would like in your new role to be alerted about a visit to London next week by a delegation of LegCo Members led by Emily Lau.

They will be in London from 7-10 June. The purpose of their visit is

visit is to lobby on BN (0) passports in Hong Kong and passports for ethnic minorities in Hong Kong. I attach a note which sets out the position on these rather complex issues. Charles Wardles' office has the relevant telegrams.

The group will see Charles Wardle at 3 p.m. on Wednesday 9 June. I am attaching their programme, which also includes calls on Tony Blair, Jack Cunningham, members of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee, the Home Affairs Select Committee, Lord Howe, Baroness Thatcher and a number of other MPS and peers.

This visit will require reasonably careful public handling. It is the kind of issue on which Labour and the Liberal Democrats could try to score a few points at the Government's expense if they chose to.

The important point from our point of view is that the British and Hong Kong Governments should be seen to be listening to LegCo's concerns.

On 3N (0) passports, the Governor has

Governor has recommended a small change to our policy which would take a great deal of the heat out of the issue here. Essentially it involves allowing holders of BDTC passports to keep them until 30 June 1997, but to get them to apply now for a BNO passport which would only come into effect then. Our problem is that we have to have a phased programme for the issue of BN (0) passports between now and 1997, with legally-binding cut off dates for each age group. Otherwise we risk a rush of applications at the last minute which could not cope with. On the other hand, the perception exists here (wrongly) that a BN (0) passport is inferior to a BDTC passport and that by insisting people replace their BDTC passports early we are somehow depriving them of their rights. Hence our proposals that people should be able to hold the two passports concurrently, with the BN (O) only coming into effect after the

PERSONAL AND CONFIDENTIAL