§ [Nos. 59–63]
§ Clause 25, page 21, line 27, leave out ("its registered office") and insert ("an appropriate place")
§ Clause 25, page 21, line 32, at end insert ("and all copies and memorandums kept by a company in pursuance of this subsection shall be kept at the same place.")
§ ("(1A) The following shall, as regards a company, be appropriate places for the purposes of the foregoing subsection namely,—
- (a) its registered office:
- (b) the place where its register of members is kept (if other than its registered office);
- (c) its principal place of business, provided that that is situate in England, in a case in which the company is registered in England and in Scotland, in a case in which the company is registered in Scotland.
§ (1B) Every company shall send notice to the registrar of companies of the place where copies and memorandums required by subsection (1) above to be kept by it are kept and of any change in that place, save in a case in which they have at all times been kept at its registered office.")
§ Clause 25, page 21,line 33, leave out ("the foregoing subsection") and insert ("subsection (1) above")
§ Clause 25, page 21,line 43, at end insert (", and, if default is made for fourteen days in complying with subsection (1B) above, the company and every officer of the company who is in default shall be liable to a default fine")
§ LORD WALSTONMy Lords, with permission, I should like to speak to Amendments Nos. 59 to 63 inclusive. Clause 25 requires a company to keep copies of certain of the contracts of service of its directors with the company, and to make these copies available for 1199 inspection by members of the company. As drafted the clause requires the copies to be kept at the company's registered office. It has been represented by various people with considerable practical experience in these matters that some companies regard these contracts as being confidential, so far as anyone other than a member of the company is concerned, and therefore, in order to ensure that they are kept in a place suitable for their confidential nature, they are frequently kept in the custody of a responsible officer of the company, such as the company secretary, and such an officer may from time to time not in fact work at the company's registered office. We accept this commonsense attitude, and these Amendments are designed to take account of this view. I beg to move that the House doth agree with the Commons in the said Amendments.
§ Moved, That this House doth agree with the Commons in the said Amendments.—(Lord Walston.)
§ On Question, Motion agreed to.