DUTY OF THE REGISTRAR OF COMPANIES (Hansard, 19 October 1976)

§ Mr. Higgins
I beg to move, That the clause be read a Second time.
The clause concerns the duty of the Registrar of Companies and raises a new issue of which I become aware only a short time ago. Representations have been made to me that difficulties are arising because the Registrar of Companies has not placed any documents of registration on the public file for a considerable period of time and that those who wish to consult the file are experiencing problems.
This is a probing new clause and no doubt the Under-Secretary has made inquiries into the situation. We want to know the work load of the Registrar and whether there is any reason why the new clause should not be accepted. Perhaps an undertaking by the Under-Secretary that he has looked into the situation and an assurance that delays will not occur in future will be acceptable to us. We do not necessarily need to write into the legislation a time limit which might be onorous to the Registrar. But it is unfortunate if those who wish to use the register find that they cannot get the information within a reasonable time.

§ Mr. Clinton Davis
I respond to the hon. Gentleman along the lines of his invitation and I shall not go into the complexities of the legislation. There have been a number of difficulties of a teething nature following the changes 1336 which had to be introduced into the operation of Companies House, which moved to Cardiff in April. A considerable scheme of modernisation is progressing and I invite the hon. Member for Worthing (Mr. Higgins) to see it. The delays have been eliminated but the Registrar is not complacent about the situation. The progress of the modernisation is kept under constant review and the intention is to improve services to users wherever possible.
While some disclocation was inevitable, when one views the scale of the operation, it can be shown that the new system will give greater benefits than before. The system of regular meetings of the register users' working group which we inaugurated, will also be of benefit to the Registrar by ensuring that complaints are funneled through to him. In those circumstances I hope that hon. Members will feel that the matter has been put right. There is no reason to believe that the problem will recur.

§ Mr. Higgins
Will the Minister indicate the length of the present delay and when it is likely to be reduced to the level suggested in the new clause?

§ Mr. Davis
Representations have also been made to my Department. I cannot specify the exact period but I will write to the hon. Gentleman. He can accept my assurance that the matter has been dealt with.