4TH ADD
QUESTION:
GOVERNOR, IT'S BEEN 10 MONTHS SINCE. FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSE, YOU GAZETTED PROPOSALS. JUST HOW UNHAPPY ARE YOU THAT YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE TO STAND BEFORE THE LEGISLATORS AND SAY: "LOOK, IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME THAT I TALKS ABOUT THIS, AS MUCH AS A YEAR AGO. AND I'M STANDING HERE AND I DON'T HAVE ANYTHING TO TELL YOU GUYS EXCEPT THAT I HOPE THAT WE CAN DO SOMETHING IN A COUPLE OF MONTHS."
GOVERNOR:
TWO POINTS. FIRST OF ALL, IT WOULD BE WRONG OF ME TO MAKE ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT PROGRESS OR LACK OF PROGRESS IN THE TENTH, THE ELEVENTH, THE TWELFTH AND ANY OTHER ROUNDS THAT MAY TAKE PLACE BEFORE MY LEGCO SPEECH JUST AS IT WOULD BE WRONG OF ME TO MAKE ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT WHAT MAY OR MAY NOT BE AGREED AT THE MEETING BETWEEN FOREIGN MINISTERS WHICH I HOPE WILL TAKE PLACE ABOUT THE TIME OF THE UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY THIS AUTUMN. SO I CAN'T MAKE THOSE ASSUMPTIONS. SECONDLY, WHEN I DO SPEAK TO THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL I WILL HAVE TO SET OUT FOR THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL IN MORE THAN TELEGRAMATIC FORM WHERE WE NOW STAND IN THE DEBATE ON THE ELECTORAL ARRANGEMENTS FOR 1994/1995. THAT IS NOT TO STATE A DEADLINE, IT IS TO STATE, ONCE AGAIN, WHAT EVERYBODY I THINK RECOGNISES AS MY RESPONSIBILITY. I THINK THE COMMUNITY HAS ALWAYS TAKEN THE VIEW THAT WE SHOULD LEAN OVER BACKWARDS TO TRY TO GET A FAIR
A FAIR AND ACCEPTABLE SETTLEMENT. SO I THINK THE COMMUNITY WILL RECOGNISE WHY WE HAVE PATIENTLY SPENT EIGHT MONTHS TRYING TO ARRIVE AT AN AGREEMENT. I THINK THE COMMUNITY WANTS US TO LEAN OVER BACKWARDS. I DON'T THINK IT WANTS US TO FALL OVER BACKWARDS. I DON'T THINK IT WANTS US TO FALL FOR ANYTHING. I THINK IT WANTS AN AGREEMENT WHICH IS DECENT AND SENSIBLE AND IF DESPITE MONTHS AND MONTHS AND HOURS AND HOURS OF TALKS, IF DESPITE ALL THOSE MILES OF AIRLINE TRAVEL WHICH THE MEMBERS OF OUR TEAM HAVE CLOCKED UP IN THE LAST FEW MONTHS, IF DESPITE ALL THAT, DESPITE THE BEST EFFORTS OF SIR ROBIN MCLAREN AND HIS TEAM, WE HAVEN'T GOT AN AGREEMENT, THEN WE SHALL HAVE ΤΟ TAKE OUR RESPONSIBILITIES AS I DESCRIBED EARLIER.
QUESTION:
WHAT DO YOU THINK
MR MURDOCH ?
MURDO
HOW GOOD IS YOUR HOLIDAY? OF... THE SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
GOVERNOR:
I HAD AN EXTREMELY ENJOYABLE HOLIDAY. I WAS KEPT IN TOUCH WITH DEVELOPMENTS IN HONG KONG ON A REGULAR BASIS BY THE CHIEF SECRETARY BY TELEPHONE. I WAS ABLE TO HAVE A MEETING IN ITALY WITH THE FOREIGN SECRETARY SINCE WE WERE BOTH HOLIDAYING IN THAT COUNTRY AND I HAD A USEFUL DISCUSSION WITH HIM AS WELL AS A PARTICULARLY INTERESTING VISIT TO THE "FRESCOS AND THE REPSO (?)" IT WAS A GOOD HOLIDAY.
I'VE COME BACK, AS I HOPE YOU SEE, REFRESHED AND ENTHUSIASTIC NOT LEAST ENTHUS (ASTIC TO CONTINUE TO READ IN THE SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST AND IN WAH KIU YAT PO THE SAME HIGH STANDARDS OF JOURNALISM, I AM SURE WRITTEN AS INDEPENDENTLY AND WITH AS MUCH INTEGRITY AS EVER. AND IF THAT HASN'T DONE ME ANY GOOD WITH THE NEW MANAGEMENT I'M NOT SURE WHAT WILL HAVE DONE, IF THERE IS ANY NEW MANAGEMENT. I'VE SEEN THE REPORTS TODAY AND, SO FAR AS I CAN JUDGE, THIS IS PURELY A COMMERCIAL MATTER AND DOESN'T IN ANY WAY BREACH ANY OF OUR LAWS. SO IT'S NOT REALLY A MATTER INTO WHICH I THINK I SHOULD GET INVOLVED, BUT I REPEAT THAT I AM SURE THAT WHOEVER OWNS THESE TWO DISTINGUISHED NEWSPAPERS, THOSE WHO RUN THEM AND THOSE WHO WRITE THEM
10
I10'd
8406 SPO 238 +
'S'1'9
62:02
£661-D3S-20
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