TNAG-2967-FCO40-4246-Future-of-Hong-Kong-British-Consulate-General-inclusion-of--1993 — Page 5

CODE 18-77

Reference..

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12 November 1993

MED 406/13

16/11

RECE

1 5 NOV 1993

Mr Barnes Jones

INUE

Hong Kong Department

་........་-..་་་་་་་

BRITISH CONSULATE GENERAL BUILDING: BRITISH CHAMber of COMMERCE

1.

Please refer to your minute which has been passed to me to reply. The response to the questions in your para 2

are:-

(1)

It was agrood, at one of the Steering Committee meetings, that, due to the Mas reviny, there would be some surplus space available and the Chamber

Assuming the should be offered 300 equazo metres. Chamber take on the 200m2 the recalculation of rent based on the minianum 6% TER rule would..ka:

£28,450,000 (new current cost

estimate) x 200 x 6 = £20,520 per annum

16,642 100

(ii) The service charge for 200m2 based on typical Hong Kong rate of HK$ 4.5 per month per sq. ft and rate of exchange of 11.50 £10,110 per annum

(iii) The service charge includes electricity for

lighting and power, air conditioning, cleaning,

These are all general maintenance and utilities. elements which the British Council agree to pay. The issues in dispute with the Council i.e. lift and escalation replacement and repair of external fabric can be excluded for the Chamber as the latter are taking up a nominal small surplus space within Commercial Sect of the BCG whereas we are purpose building a large self contained area for the Council.

(iv) We do not need to go to Treasury provided our

minimum rent does not go below the 6% TDR formula index linked to UK inflation.

(v) The TDR formula is normally used only for other

HMG organisations and in our view we could be open to criticism for applying this formula to NGOs. The market rent for the cheaper areas in Wanchai,ard Causeway Bay is at present HK $25 per sq ft per month. At this rate the rent chargeable for 200m2

PCAS4.256

TOTAL