'We have told the Government that they had better not rely upon us to nominate Christian [Protestant] representatives for the Election Committee,' said the Reverend Kwok Nai-wang, director of the Hong Kong Christian Institute, a member of the council.

Changes in election legislation - introduced on July 15 - mean religious groups will not have to nominate representatives to sit on the committee, only verify that they are members of that religion.

It will now be left up to the Constitutional Affairs Bureau to nominate representatives for both the Catholic and Christian Council seats.

Repeating its call for all 60 Legco seats to be directly elected, Catholic auxiliary Bishop Joseph Zen Ze-kiun said after consulting legal advisers the diocese had no choice but to offer 'passive compliance' and allow Catholics to take part in the Election Committee, according to the weekly Catholic newspaper, the Sunday Examiner.

But he said: 'The Catholic Diocese does not want those Catholics on the [committee] to be seen in any way as representative of the Church,' the paper reported.

Under the Basic Law, religious groups must be involved in the Election Committee and no religion can withdraw from the committee.

Mr Kwok said: 'Most of the Protestant churches are not eager to take part in the Election Committee. It has always been controversial and ever since the 1998 elections the Protestant churches have said that they did not want to participate in such an elitist, undemocratic group.' A government spokesman said that in the amendment to the Legco ordinance, if a group nominated more than the assigned number but failed to assign preference to the nominees, the returning officer would determine the representatives, by drawing lots.

The Basic Law provides for six faiths - Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, Islam, Protestantism and Catholicism - to send six or seven representatives each to vote on the Election Committee.

Other religious groups, such as Hindus and Jews, have been excluded from participation.