THE Government will next week clarify whether Britain has backed away from promises that it would offer refuge to Hongkong British nationals in case of turmoil after 1997.
Chief Secretary Sir David Ford will tell legislators at their meeting on Wednesday details of the British and Hongkong Government's position on the issue.
Legislator Emily Lau Wai-hing said she was surprised to hear Home Office Minister Charles Wardle saying that only the 7,000 ethnic minorities in Hongkong would be allowed to enter Britain in case of emergency.
She said Britain had promised in 1985 that any Hongkong British national could enter Britain if they had nowhere else to go after 1997.
Ms Lau, chairman of the Legislative Council sub-committee on the issue, has written to the Home Office seeking clarification.
She described as ''ridiculous'' the British Government's apparent decision not to honour its previous promise.