Patten offers HK deal

The Governor of Hong Kong, Chris Patten, said he would accept agreement with China on part of his democracy proposals if that would speed up resolution of the contentious issues, writes Raymond Whitaker.

If Peking was willing to agree on 'the simple things', such as next year's municipal elections and plans to cut the voting age from 21 to 18, 'we'll be very happy to receive a call', he said. This would allow negotiators to concentrate on the more difficult question of the 1995 Legislative Council elections. British sources said this was a rhetorical point, but an agency report on his 'surprise concession' boosted Hong Kong-related shares New York.