8 | Tax Opinion of Davis Polk & Wardwell, dated December 7, 2006, relating to the registrant’s Global Medium-Term Notes, Series F, Senior Notes, Leveraged Index-Linked Securities Linked to an Index or a Basket of Indices, as described in the Prospectus Supplement for Leveraged Index-Linked Securities dated December 1, 2006 and the Prospectus dated January 25, 2006 related to Registration Statement No. 333-131266; Global Medium-Term Notes, Series F, Senior Notes, Principal Protected Notes Linked to an Index or a Basket of Indices, as described in the Prospectus Supplement for Principal Protected Notes dated December 1, 2006 and the Prospectus dated January 25, 2006 related to Registration Statement No. 333-131266; Global Medium-Term Notes, Series F, Senior Notes, Leveraged Index-Linked Securities Linked to an Index or a Basket of Indices, as described in the Prospectus Supplement for Leveraged Index-Linked Securities dated December 7, 2006 and the Prospectus dated January 25, 2006 related to Registration Statement No. 333-131266; Global Medium-Term Notes, Series F, Senior Notes, Principal Protected Notes Linked to an Index or a Basket of Indices, as described in the Prospectus Supplement for Principal Protected Notes dated December 7, 2006 and the Prospectus dated January 25, 2006 related to Registration Statement No. 333-131266; and Global Medium-Term Notes, Series F, Senior Notes, Review Notes Linked to an Index or Indices, as described in the Prospectus Supplement for Review Notes dated December 7, 2006 and the Prospectus dated January 25, 2006 related to Registration Statement No. 333-131266. |