@RemmyM

Yup, there is such a thing as Scottish pounds. They're not actually legal tender (but are treated as such) anywhere!

"Scottish and Northern Irish banknotes are unusual, firstly because they are issued by retail banks, not central banks, and secondly, as they are not legal tender anywhere in the UK – not even in Scotland or Northern Ireland – they are in fact promissory notes. Indeed, no banknotes (even Bank of England notes) are now legal tender in Scotland or Northern Ireland.[14][28]

Seven retail banks have the authority of Parliament to issue sterling banknotes as currency.[29] Despite this, the notes are sometimes refused in England and Wales, and are not always accepted by banks and exchange bureaus outside of the United Kingdom. This is particularly true in the case of the Royal Bank of Scotland £1 note, which is the only £1 note to remain in circulation within the UK." source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banknotes_of_the_pound_sterling#Scotland_an...

@wefrucar
Well, firstly, even I didn't know that Scottish pounds aren't legal tender (not even in Scotland, lol) until just now, when I looked it up on wikipedia for the sake of interest.

It's funny, when people complain about businesses outside Scotland refusing to accept Scottish notes, one thing they often say is "Why not? It's legal f-ing tender!". Now we can retort with "No it f-ing ain't". But I digress.

In response to your question, wefrucar, I think it was just complacency on her part. Since Scottish notes and English notes are used interchangeably in Scotland (and even in England only a small minority of businesses would actually outright refuse them), it didn't occur to her to think of the difficulty she might face trying to change them in China.

To clarify, Scottish notes are considered "legal currency" (from the same wikipedia page, the whole "The question of legal tender" part is interesting): "Millions of pounds' worth of sterling banknotes in circulation are not legal tender, but that does not mean that they are illegal or of lesser value; their status is of "legal currency" (that is to say that their issue is approved by the parliament of the UK) and they are backed up by Bank of England securities.[19]

Bank of England notes are the only banknotes that are legal tender in England and Wales. Scottish and Northern Ireland banknotes are not legal tender anywhere, and Jersey, Guernsey and Manx banknotes are only legal tender in their respective jurisdictions. The fact that these banknotes are not legal tender in the UK does not however mean that they are illegal under English law, and creditors and traders may accept them if they so choose. Traders may, on the other hand, choose not to accept banknotes as payment as contract law across the United Kingdom allows parties not to engage in a transaction at the point of payment if they choose not to."