51茶馆

This point was made by Lord Wilberforce, in Ramsay, where he commented (at page 190) that the relevant loan had 鈥�a structure of permanence such as fitted it to be dealt in....鈥� In fact, the loan in that case was repaid early. But it had been issued on terms which meant that a large penalty would be payable in the event of early repayment. It is not possible to set any precise limits for the 鈥榣ife鈥� of a debt, which would enable it to be regarded as a debt on a security. The attractiveness of any particular debt will depend upon the other terms of the loan, and on the type of market in which the debt would normally be traded.

听

You can accept that any loan which could not be terminated by the borrower within a year from the date of commencement will have the required 鈥榮tructure of permanence鈥�. But a debt will 鈥榥ot have a structure of permanence鈥� merely because the borrower is not in a position to repay the debt in the foreseeable future.