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HONG KONG LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL.
PAPERS.
THE COLONIAL SECRETARY, by comman dof H.E. The Governor, laid upon the table the following papers:
Order under Section 230 (1) of the Public Health and Buildings
Ordinance, 1903, on 2nd August, 1929.
The Mercantile Marine (Uniform) Order, 1918.
Regulation under Section 3 of the Post Office Ordinance, 1926,
on 10th September, 1929.
FINANCE COMMITTEE'S REPORT.
THE COLONIAL SECRETARY, by command of H.E. The Governor, laid upon the table the report of the Finance Committee, No. 11, of 5th September, 1929, and moved that it be adopted.
to.
THE COLONIAL TREASURER seconded, and this was agreed
EXCESSES ON SUB-HEADS, 1927.
THE COLONIAL SECRETARY.-Sir, In accordance with the maxim de minimis non curat lex, it has been the custom of this Government since, I believe, the year 1910, if not earlier, to regard items of $20 when they constitute an excess over the total of any sub-head in the Estimates, as being matters of such trival moment as not to deserve or require the attention of this honourable Council. Our lynx-eyed auditors, however, when considering the report of the Colony's accounts for the year 1927, drew our attention to the fact that we were not complying with the strict letter of the Colonial regulations and requested us to comply with them. That is the cause of the two motions which stand in my name on the Agenda paper. The items, as you will see, are all, with one excep- tion, under $20, and I have to ask the authority of the Council for passing these excesses on the sub-heads in the Supply Bills for 1927 and 1928.
Honourable members may, perhaps, call my attention to the fact that one item is more than $20, viz., item 33, in the first motion, of $756.78, for a one ton motor lorry specially fitted as a Mobile Wireless Station. This item should not, in my opinion, have appeared in the Colony's accounts at all, except as an advance. It represents that portion of the cost of this motor lorry which was contributed by the Corps funds of the Hong Kong Volunteer Defence Corps. The rest of the cost was borne by Government, but when the lorry came to be paid for the whole sum was charged temporarily to the votes of the Colony. The end of the financial year, which falls on the 31st December for all Government accounts, caught this portion of the cost not yet repaid by the Volunteer Defence Corps, and although it was repaid in 1928, the auditors have drawn our attention to the fact that as it stands, it is in
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