CO129-606-2 Treasury control over Hong Kong finances 22-1-1948 - 9-12-1948 — Page 71

Draft on

650B A/cs.

I.F. 16/10/02.

Dear Serpell,

Colonial Office,

15, Victoria Street, London, S., W.1.

20 May, 1948.

all

12

7

I have been looking through the Colonial and Middle Eastern Services account for 1946/7 to check up the position as regards Colonies which are required to render audited accounts to us in order that we can pass them on to the Comptroller and Auditor-General after certification and report by the Director-General of Colonial Audit where this is appropriate and I have come to the case of Hong Kong.

We made an issue of £750,000 to the Colony in 1946/7 from Subhead F.1. The wording of this subhead of the 1946/7 estimate was in the usual grant-in-aid form and requires us to render the audited accounta to the Comptroller and Auditor-General together with any report thereon by the Director-General of Colonial Audit.

So far as I can discover the form of Treasury control for Hong Kong has never been finally settled and we have never received an official letter from the Treasury instituting such control as laid down in paragraph 1 of Miscellaneous No.460B. Accordingly, the procedure laid down in that document does not appear to apply and I think that for 1946/7 we shall be complying with the terms of the Parliamentary Estimate if we forward to the Comptroller and auditor- General the annual account of the Colony for that year, showing the receipt of £750,000 with the

D.R. SERPELL, ES.., 0.B. E.

certificate