§ Sir A. Knoxasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs how much in 962W arrear is the payment of interest to British bondholders secured on Chinese Customs revenue; what is the present position in relation to the Chinese Government; and whether Sir Frederick Maze, the Chinese Inspector-General of Customs, is in a position to make allocations of Customs revenue without interference by the Japanese authorities in the occupied areas?
§ Mr. ButlerApart from the amounts allocated for the upkeep of the Customs establishment, the Customs revenue collected in the occupied areas is paid into Japanese-controlled banks and none of it is remitted to the Inspector-General for other purposes. In consequence, the Chinese Government decided as from 15th January, 1939, to suspend the service of the loans secured on the Customs, and the British bondholders have not received payment of interest since that date.