DEF75/51/02
Simplex D. 3rd July 1957
R. 3rd
10.04 hours.
IMMEDIATE
TOP SECRET
No. 490
Your telegram No. 562.
Army Garrison.
Despite fact that estimate given in your telegram is three times that given to me by C. B. F., I still wish proposal
to be pursued.
2.
Following are my reactions:-
(a) Defence of Colony against external aggression is
primary responsibility of H.M.G.
(b) The regiments under discussion are necessary for that
defence.
(c) Colony should assist H.M.G. so far as it can in dis-
charging H.M.G.'s burden.
(a) Heavy local defence and security burden on Colony.
(Finance Committee is being asked this week to approve additional expenditure on Police Force of nearly nine million dollars. This is to meet internal threat and gross overcrowding caused by influx of refugees, neither of them the sole responsibility of a colonial dependency.)
(e) Heavy burden on Colony of refugees, expenditure on
which has cost Colony to date approximately 300 million dollars without any help from H.M.G.
(f) Reduction in size of Garrison, since Colony's annual
contribution towards cost thereof was agreed at 16 million dollars.
(g) Annual income per head of population in U.K. more
than five times that in Hong Kong.
3. In view of the above, particularly (e), I had decided to seek approval of Finance Committee to transfer 15 million dollars from Colony's Garrison contribution to rehousing,
As resettlement etc. (see my letter of 27th June to Melville). stated in paragraph 3 of my telegram No. 310, I am prepared to drop this proposal if I can be assured that the regiments in Hong Kong (reduced in the light of your telegram under reply from three to two) will remain in, Hong Kong for three to five years.
1
4. In effect, this means that Hong Kong will be paying the same Garrison contribution as before even though the
Pagesofson has been reduced (but not to the full extpat
first
/contemplated
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