I N the past few years, there has been a great deal of discussion about the future of Hong Kong and the lease of the New Territories.' There are two reasons for this: first, 1997, the expiry date of the New Territories lease, is no longer far away. Many large-scale investment and construction projects, such as a new airport and perhaps a nuclear power plant, could not be completed by then; unless China and Britain can soon come to an agreement regarding the New Territories lease, many of these projects will probably be shelved. Second, since the fall of the Gang of Four and the shift in emphasis to the Four Modernisations, the Chinese leadership has begun to appreciate the importance of foreign trade and the introduction of advanced technology and capital from the West; Hong Kong's contribution to China's economic development has accordingly become more significant. In addition, the present Chinese leaders are less dogmatic than their predecessors, and seem likely to adopt a more pragmatic attitude towards the question of Hong Kong. The possibility of China and Britain coming to a negotiated settlement over this historical legacy is correspondingly higher. Owing to the increasing urgency of the problem and the apparent optimism of the citizens of Hong Kong over the future of the Colony, the local mass media and the stock market indices have become very sensitive, occasionally over-sensitive, to high-level contacts involving Britain, China and Hong Kong, as well as to official and semi-official statements concerning Hong Kong's future. Up to now, there has been nothing to suggest that negotiations between China and Britain have begun. On October 7, 1979, Hua Kuo-feng, the then Chinese Premier, held a press conference for Western correspondents before his visit to Europe. When asked if he could guarantee the maintenance of the