interpretation of any of the provisions whether the SAR courts have jurisdiction or not and irrespective of there being any litigation on the point, though a leading Chinese official is reported as giving his opinion that the Standing Committee "will restrict itself to interpreting only the provisions which are the responsibility of the Central Government or the relationship between the Central Authorities and the SAR-[28]]
17.
The original proposals for monitoring laws enacted by the legislature of the SAR would have empowered the Standing Committee to return for reconsideration or revoke any law it considered not to be in conformity with the Basic Law or "legal procedures"- a straight forward vires test which was consistent with the interpretative function of the Standing Committee, and for that reason objected to in Hong Kong on the grounds that this should be the function of the
[29] courts
Although the Chinese maintained the principle that the Standing Committee should retain a role in monitoring the laws enacted in the SAR, the criterion was ' changed. The function of the Standing Committee in the text as adopted is to determine whether or not a law is in conformity with the provisions regarding affairs within the responsibility of the Central Authorities or regarding the relationship between the Central Authorities and the SAR. If it is not so consistent, the law will be returned and invalidated.
18. Implicit in the absorption of Hong Kong in a unitary
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