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DOCUMENTS show former governor, the late Sir Edward Youde was a full member of the British negotiating team during talks on the territory's future held between 1983 and 1984 - despite claims from Beijing that he was merely an adviser.

  According to the draft agreement over Hongkong's future initialled by China and Britain on September 26, 1984, ''the Governor of Hongkong took part in every round of formal talks as a member of the British delegation''.

  This contrasts sharply with comments by former Chinese negotiating team leader, Mr Yao Guang, on Monday.

  Britain was yesterday still insisting Hongkong officials should participate in the talks as full members of the British negotiating team.

  Sources close to the British side said that Hongkong officials would be denied access to some documents and minutes of the talks, and might be denied the right to attend some meetings if they did not participate as full members of the British negotiatingteam.

  Such an arrangement might lead to suspicion that a secret deal could be reached between China and Britain over Hongkong's future, said a source.

  Despite Mr Yao's claim that during the early 1980s talks, Sir Edward and the then Political Adviser Mr [now Sir] Robin McLaren were only accepted as advisers to the British team, both the Sino-British agreement and attendance records of the 1983-84 talkspoint otherwise.

  Records show that Sir Edward participated in all 22 rounds of talks as a full member and Sir Robin also participated in the first 17 rounds of talks, except on one occasion when his deputy, Mr Richard Margolis, sat in for him as acting Political Adviser.

  On the Sino-British Joint Liaison Group (JLG), the first Hongkong official appointed to the diplomatic body, Mr Eric Ho, was required to hold a full British passport.

  But all other subsequent Hongkong members including former Secretary for Home Affairs, Mr Donald Liao Poon-huai, the former Secretary for Constitutional Affairs, Mr Michael Suen Ming-yeung and incumbent constitutional chief, Mr Michael Sze Cho-cheung, were not required to hold full British passports.

  Hongkong officials, such as the Financial Secretary, Mr Hamish Macleod, and the Secretary for Economic Services, Mrs Anson Chan Fang On-sang, had participated in talks over the Chek Lap Kok airport projects.

    But the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding on the new airport project was only secured by secret talks between Beijing leaders and Sir Percy Cradock, former foreign affairs adviser to British Prime Minister, Mr John Major.

  A vice-director of the local branch of the New China News Agency, Mr Zhang Junsheng, said over the weekend that the differences between the two sides over the participation of Hongkong officials in Sino-British talks after the signing of the Joint Declaration had always existed. But these had been put aside after the joint accord as China maintained that Britain would consult with China on the basis of friendly co-operation.

  Given current Sino-British relations, Mr Zhang ruled out any Hongkong officials' participation in the talks as full members.

  But a British source said that friendliness with China was never spelt out as a condition for Hongkong officials' participation as full members of the JLG.

  The source added that full members had the right and duty to attend all meetings and had the right of access to all documents and minutes, while advisers were denied such rights.

  The source stressed that the participation of Hongkong members was a matter of principle.



Youde's talks role disputes Beijing claim