TNAG-2967-FCO40-4246-Future-of-Hong-Kong-British-Consulate-General-inclusion-of--1993 — Page 17

每制事務司

布政司害

CONFIDENTIAL

Secretary for Constitutional Affairs

GOVERNMENT SECRETARIAT.

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RE:

ilast

Mr. P.F. Ricketts,

3/10155. 12 OCT 1993

Hong Kong Department, FCO

LOWER ALBERT ROAD. HONG KONG.

By Fax

7 October 1993

Mrs BJ

Dear Petter,

British Consulate General: Private:rmaty Grant

10 میں

2.

Thank you for your letter of 27.9.1993.

We have given very careful thought to your suggestion that approval be given by the Director of Lands under Special Condition 13 to permit accommodation of the British Chamber of Commerce in the BCG building. Unfortunately, as your Legal Advisers have pointed out

be (and our lawyers agree), it would be exceedingly difficult to argue that such a course of action would be consistent with Special Condition 72% That being the case, the Director would be acting ultra vires if he were to proceed as suggested. In these ⠀⠀ circumstances, it would not be right for us to give you the acknowledgement, which your Legal Advisers have suggested, that in granting a licence to the BCC there would be no breach of SC 7.

such

3.

but

For these reasona I am afraid there is no option to resort to a formal läse modification if it is still your firm wish to accommodate the BCC in the BCG building. I am assured by the Secretary for Planning, Environment and Lands that there should be no major difficulty

difficulty with this approach, provided that no additional Gross Floor Area is envisaged.

4.

Whichever route we follow, there is clearly â China dimension. It would be impossible to keep this confidential, since at sono stage the fact that the BCC will be accommodated in thề Bec building will become public knowledge. [And if the less modification route is used, modification document will normally be recorded in the Land Registry and thus become public document.]

public document.] Whenever they find

out, the Chinese could (if they so wish) us of bad faith, in that throughout the negotiation with them over the Colvin Hauki site we have never told them

CONFIDENTIAL

accuse

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