TNAG-0316-FCO40-352-Reform-of-local-government-of-Hong-Kong-1971 — Page 152

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However, the exemption of Government premises from this rate liability in no affects the calculation of the Council's initial rate; and in any case, such exemption seems sensible as there is no intention to require the Urban Council to pay the Government rate on Urban Council's premises (the Rating Ordinance will have to be amended to exempt Urban Council's premises).

21.

Government would continue to assess and collect the rates, but would not charge the Urban Council for this service, since it involves little extra effort. Rates are paid quarterly in advance, most being duly paid by the end of the first month of the quarter in question. These difficulties could be overcome by Government agreeing to give the Urban Council the amount of rates demanded on its behalf, rather than the (lesser) sun actually collected. The Treasury would pay the Council its rate quarterly.

22.

The essence of these proposals is the designation of a specific Urban Council rate in the Rating Ordinance and the requirement that any increases in that rate approved by Legislative Council will have to be defended publicly by the Urban Council. There are practical problems in specifying such a rate, connected with collection shortfalls, legal action to recover arrears, and the division of the proceeds between Government

Both and the Urban Council, and these are being studied in detail. the Urban Council rate percentage, and the Government rate percentage, and the suns due in respect of each would be specified in every

Demand bte.

23.

The

In practice, all rate payments received would be paid into Government's bank account, credited to a deposit account. Urban Council's share of the rate collections would then be calculated and the deposit account cleared by payment of this amount to the Urban Council, and the balance to the appropriate Government revenue head. In this way the Estimates would only provide for Government's share of the rates and the Statement of Total Receipts and Payments would only record the amount received against this estimate. Thus double accounting (i.e. inflating both revenue and expenditure by crediting an estimate revenue head with money that will be innediately paid out through an expenditure head) will be av ided.

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