41
Pago 29.
Bonds due for redemption did not, however, take place until the 20th June, 1947. The Bonds so redeemed were therefore not due for payment, and in fact were not paid, until 15th July, 1947, in accordance with the Hong Kong Dollar Loan Ordinance (No.11 of 1934).
136. The total amount of the Bonds due for redemption in respect of the years 1942 to 1946, i.e. $5,158,000, has been charged as expenditure in the accounts for 1946/47 to Head 22 "Public Debt" by a payment of $5,158,000 made to the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation on 26th March, 1947, which has been classified as follows:-
Subhead 2, "Redemption of Bonds 1/25th of $14,000,000" Subhead 2, "Redemption of Bonds 1/25th of 11,790,000"
$2,800,000 2,358,000 $5.158.000
137. It was brought to the notice of Government that this payment had not been applied to the purpose for which Expenditure Head 22 was intended to provide during the year 1946/47, and the Accountant General has been asked to inform me of authority under which this sum ($5,158,000) was withdrawn and paid to the Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking Corporation and charged to expenditure in the accounts for 1946/47. It was also pointed out that, at the date the payment was made, it was clear that the redemption of Bonds under these Loan Issues could not have taken place prior to the 31st of March, 1947, as the necessary 15 days notice of the Drawing required under Section 5(4) of the Hong Kong Dollar Loan Ordinance (No.11 of 1934) had not been given, and could not have been given, prior to the 31st of March, 1947, and that the payment could not be considered as having been made under the authority of the Governor's General Warrant. Information is awaited in this connection.
138. No certificate was obtained from the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation of their holding of the sum of $5,158,000 on the 31st March, 1947, for the redemption of Bonds and no interest was paid by the Bank on this sum for the period from the 26th March, 1947, to the 15th July, 1947, that it was held by the Bank, prior to the date when the Bonds became payable. As interest is paid by the Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking Corporation at % on Government's Current accounts, there has been a loss to public funds of the interest that would have been earned had this payment not been made to the Bank prior to the date when the Bonds became due for payment, i.c. 15th July, 1947. The Acting Accountant General has advised that the interest so lost amounts to 89,003 and the matter has been brought to the notice of the Colonial Secretary with a request for information as to the manner in which it is proposed to account for this loss.
139. With regard to paragraph 31 of the Accountant General's Financial Report for 1946/47, it is considered that the omission to state the date on which the drawings for the 1934 and 1940 Loans were made in 1947 renders the information given in the report as misleading, since the reference to be drawn from paragraph 31 of the report, that the figures for these Loans at 31st March, 1937, "show the position after deduction of such drawings" is that the drawings were made, and that the Bonds were redeemed, prior to 31st March, 1947, which is not the case. It would appear also that the drawings referred to in the last sentence of paragraph 31 of the report cover the period 1942 to 1946 and not 1942 to 1947, since the figures given in this paragraph for these Loans show the amounts outstanding after deduction of 5 year's drawings.
STORES
140. Store Accounts.
UNALLOCATED AND ALLOCATED
As stated in parageaph 17 of this report, the
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