§ Sir Thomas ArnoldTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement about the progress of the Sino-British talks on the future of Hong Kong.
§ Mr. HurdThere have now been four rounds of talks between Britain and China about electoral arrangements in Hong Kong. We have the responsibility to ensure that the elections to be held in 1994 and 1995 are fair, open and acceptable to the people of Hong Kong. There should also be objective criteria for confirmation of members of the 1995 Legislative Council as members of the first legislature of the Hong Kong special administrative region in 1997. We are working hard for a successful outcome from the talks. But we also need to ensure that the elections are held on time. The talks will therefore need to be brought to a conclusion in good time to allow the practical arrangements for the elections to be made; they cannot go on indefinitely. We must make more progress.