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any portion of the public accounting audit can therefore be foregone was so entirely novel that it was considered advisable to report the circumstances to you as soon as possible (Audit Letter 100/99). A copy of this letter was forwarded by you to the Secretary of State and no further action has therefore been taken locally but it is necessary that it should be clearly understood at what stage and on what basis the audit of this particular section of the accounts has commenced.
32. In March 1935 last the Legislative Council approved a resolution that the sum of $217,067.30 on account of loan works should be met from surplus balances during 1934 pending the issue of a further loan. This was necessary because the total expended was by this amount in excess of the amount raised ($13,860,000). It was pointed out by this department that such authority or, if that was not possible, at least the authority of a Governor's Warrant (now by the new edition of the Colonial Regulations styled a Loan Warrant) should have been obtained immediately it was known that surplus balances were to be so used.
33. Included in the charges against the loan was an amount $3,864,942.97 on account of Redemption of 3½% Inscribed Stock. As the schedule to the Hong Kong Dollar Loan Ordinance (No. 11 of 1934) limited this particular item to $3,400,000 it was irregular to charge more than this amount against the loan. Before doing so it was necessary first to obtain the approval of the Legislative Council and the Secretary of State enabling the Governor to direct a re-appropriation of the items in the Loan Schedule. These irregularities were partially rectified by a series of resolutions in Council on 16th April 1935. Even so, the sanction of the Secretary of State has still to be obtained although the Ordinance reads that no transfer of appropriation should be directed until after such approval has been fully given.
34. The redemption of the Inscribed 3½% Stock was carried out by the Crown Agents in October and the transactions have been included in the Treasurer's books as credits and debits to the Dollar Loan Account. The result is that in the Annual Account the receipts on account of the 3½% Dollar Loan are shown as $28,735,618.69 and the expenditure as $28,952,685.99 or practically double the actual amounts received from the Issue of Bonds and expended on Loan Work etc.
35. On reference to Government it was agreed that it would have been clearer if a separate account had been opened for recording these, the final transactions of the Sterling Loan, but the books for the year having been closed the position has to a certain extent been clarified by an explanatory note being made in the main ledger (Enclosure Q).
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any portion of the public accounting audit can therefore be foregone was so entirely novel that it was considered advisable to report the circumstances to you as soon as possible (Audit Letter 100/99). A copy of this letter was forwarded by you to the Secretary of State and no further action has therefore been taken locally but it is necessary that it should be clearly under- stood at what stage and on what basis the audit of this particular section of the accounts has commenced.
32. In March 1935 last the Legislative Council approved a resolution that the sum of $217,067.30 on account of loan works should be met from surplus balances during 1934 pending the issue of a further loan. This was necessary because the total expended was by this amount in excess of the amount raised ($13,860,000). It was pointed out by this department that such authority or, if that was not possible, at least the authority of a Governor's Warrant (now by the new edition of the Colonial Regulations styled a Loan Warrant) should have been obtained immediately it was known that surplus balances were to be so used.
33. Included in the charges against the loan was an amount $3,864,942.97 on account of Redemption of 31% Inscribed Stock. As the schedule to the Hong Kong Dollar Loan Ordinance (No. 11 of 1934) limited this particular item to $3,400,000 it was irregular to charge more than this amount against the loan. Before doing so it was necessary first to obtain the approval of the Legislative Council and the Secretary of State enabling the Governor to direct a re-appropriation of the items in the Loan Schedule. These irregularities were partially rectified by a series of resolutions in Council on 16th April 1935. Even so, the sanction of the Secretary of State has still to be obtained although the Ordinance reads that no transfer of appropriation should be directed until after such approval has been fully given.
34. The redemption of the Inscribed 31% Stock was carried out by the Crown Agents in October and the transactions have been included in the Treasurer's books as credits and debits to the Dollar Loan Account. The result is that in the Annual Account the receipts on account of the 31% Dollar Loan are shown as $28,735,618.69 and the expenditure as $28,952,685.99 or practically double the actual amounts received from the Issue of Bonds and expended on Loan Work etc.
35. On reference to Government it was agreed that it would have been clearer if a separate account had been opened for recording these, the final transactions of the Sterling Loan, but the books for the year having been closed the position has to a certain extent been clarified by an explanatory note being made in the main ledger (Enclosure Q).
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