WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19, 1974.
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LOANS TO CO-OPERATIVE HOUSING SCHEMES
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SUFFICIENT FUNDS FROM THE DEVELOPMENT LOAN FUND - AMOUNTING TO NEARLY $10 MILLION – ARE AVAILABLE TO MEET OUTSTANDING LOAN APPLICATIONS FROM THREE CIVIL SERVANT'S CO-OPERATIVE BUILDING SOCIETIES, THE SECRETARY FOR HOUSING, HR. IAN LIGHTBODY, SAID TODAY.
REPLYING TO A QUESTION FROM THE HON, LI FOOK-WO, HE ASSURED THE COUNCIL THAT EVERYTHING POSSIBLE VITHIN THE LIMITS OF AVAILABLE FINANCE WILL BE DONE TO HELP THE THREE SOCIETIES TO COMPLETE THEIR SCHEMES.
ALTHOUGH GOVERNMENT LOANS WERE ORIGINALLY INTENDED TO MEET THE MAJOR PART OF THE COST OF THE SCHEMES, HE SAID, RISING BUILDING COSTS HAVE OBLIGED SOME SOCIETIES TO SEEK EXTRA FUNDS THROUGH BANK LOANS.
TO HELP THE SOCIETIES TO COPE WITH FINANCING PROBLEMS, THE GOVERNMENT ALLOWS THEM TO DEFER THE SERVICING OF THEIR LOANS UNTIL THEY HAVE REPAID THEIR BANK LOANS, WHICH ARE · NORMALLY REPAYABLE WITHIN FIVE YEARS.
OF THE THREE APPLICATIONS STILL OUTSTANDING, ONE SOCIETY HAS ALREADY BEEN GIVEN A GOVERNMENT LOAN AND HAS OBTAINED A BANK LOAN.
THE EXACT AMOUNT OF LOAN REQUIRED BY THE REMAINING TWO COULD NOT BE DETERMINED UNTIL THE COST OF THEIR SCHEMES HAS BEEN FINALLY SETTLED, NR. LIGHTBODY EXPLAINED, BUT THE AVAILABLE BALANCE SHOULD BE SUFFICIENT TO ALLOW STANDARD LOANS TO BE MADE TO THEM.
SEPARATE COURT OF APPEAL, UNDER WAY
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HONG KONG IS TO HAVE A SEPARATE COURT OF APPEAL.
THIS WAS DISCLOSED IN THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL TODAY BY THE ATTORNEY GENERAL, THE HON. JOHN HOBLEY, IN REPLY TO A QUESTION BY THE HON. WOO PAK-CHUEN WHO WANTED TO KNOW WHETHER ANY PROGRESS HAD BEEN MADE ON CREATING A SEPARATE COURT OF APPEAL FOR HONG KONG.
MR. HOBLEY SAID: IT HAS BEEN AGREED THAT THE SUPREME COURT SHOULD BE RECONSTITUTED SO AS TO CONSIST OF A HIGH COURT, AND A COURT OF APPEAL COMPOSED OF THE CHIEF JUSTICE AND JUDGES OF APPEAL.+
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