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(ii)

(iii)

if a referee has not entered into a formal contractual agreement with the lender to guarantee the liabilities of the borrower or cardholder, the referee has no legal obligation in respect of the borrower's liabilities towards the lender. The Working Group will consider recommending Als to inform referees in writing of this basic principle and other rights and responsibilities of referees:

Als or debt collection agencies have no right to recover the debt from the referee unless the latter has taken on the role of a guarantor. The Administration supports in principle the suggestion that AIs should not pass information about referees to debt collection agents. This issue will be considered in detail by the Working Group together with the suggestion that Als should inform referees in case of default by the borrower or the cardholder.

Banknotes issued by Bank of China

Following is a question by Dr the Hon Law Cheung-kwok and a written reply by the Secretary for Financial Services, Mr Rafael Hui, in the Legislative Council today (Wednesday):

Question:

At the time when the Bank of China started to issue Hong Kong dollar banknotes, there were reports that such banknotes could not be exchanged for the local currency in some places in Europe and America. Moreover, during a recent trip to Taiwan, I personally experienced that Hong Kong dollar banknotes issued by the Bank of China were not exchangeable in banks and hotels in Taiwan. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether it is aware of the reasons why Hong Kong dollar banknotes issued by the Bank of China are not exchangeable in Taiwan and whether the circulation of such banknotes in Europe and America has encountered similar situation; if so, what remedial measures have been taken by the Government in this regard?