Former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher once told Deng Xiaoping Hong Kong would collapse without Britain, and the late paramount leader retorted that he was ready to take the risk, says a former top mainland official.

Zhou Nan, former director of Xinhua, also said Deng had personally made the decision to set up the so-called 'second stove' of transitional arrangements after Britain unilaterally pressed ahead with democratic reform before the handover. The retired official was recalling Deng's role in the Sino-British negotiations, in a CCTV programme on the 100th anniversary of Deng's birth.

Told by Mrs Thatcher that Hong Kong would collapse without the British, Deng said its success hinged on Beijing's policy.