Investigations and Report (Hansard, 10 November 1988)

§ Mr. Tim Smith
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how long the inspectors took to investigate the affairs of House of Fraser (Holdings) plc; what was the cost of the investigation; what is the length of the report; and when he intends to publish it.

§ Mr. Maude
[holding answer 9 November 1988]: Mr. Philip Linnell Heslop QC and Mr. Hugh Graham Cazalet Aldous FCA were appointed on 9 April 1987 under the provisions of section 432 of the Companies Act 1985 to investigate and report on the affairs of House of Fraser Holdings plc. Mr. Heslop resigned his appointment on 13 May 1987 and on 15 May 1987 Mr. Henry Brooke QC was appointed to act with with Mr. Aldous. Mr. Brooke and Mr. Aldous sumbmitted their report of 750 pages to the Secretary of State on 23 July 1988. The investigation has cost 1,500,294.
It is the Secretary of State's intention to publish the inspectors' report as soon as circumstances permit, as was made clear in my Department's press release on 29 September.

§ Mr. Tim Smith
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how long the inspectors took to investigate the affairs of Milbury plc and Westminster Property Group Ltd.; what was the cost of the investigation; and what action he proposes to take following the publication of their report and in the light of their conclusions.

§ Mr. Maude
[holding answer 9 November 1988]: Mr. Hugh Bernard Harwood Carlisle QC and Mr. Michael Gillam Lickiss FCA were appointed on 27 August 1985 under the provisions of section 432(1) of the Companies Act 1985 to investigate and report on the affairs of Milbury plc. The same inspectors were subsequently appointed on 26 November 1985 under section 442 of the Companies Act 1985 to investigate and report on the membership of Westminster Property Group Limited. They submitted their report on 26 August 1987. The investigation cost £1,135,274.
Whether further action is appropriate and, if so, what form that should take are matters which are receiving attention.

§ Mr. Tim Smith
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how long inspectors have now been investigating the affairs of Guinness plc; what has been the cost of the investigation to date; and when he now expects the inspectors to report.

§ Mr. Maude
[holding answer 9 November 1988]: Mr. David Torrance Donaldson QC and Mr. Ian Glendinning Watt FCA were appointed on 28 November 1986 under the provisions of sections 432 and 442 of the Companies Act 1985 to investigate and report on the affairs and membership of Guinness plc. The investigation has cost £1,632,578 to date. The investigation continues and I am unable to say when the inspectors will submit their report to the Secretary of State.

§ Mr. Tim Smith
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how long the inspectors have now been investigating the affairs of Barlow Clowes Gilt Managers Ltd. and James Ferguson (Holdings) plc; what has been the cost of the investigations to date; when he expects the inspectors to report; and whether he will publish as an 263W interim report the first affidavit of Walter Max Hoffman in the matter of Barlow Clowes Gilt Managers Ltd. and in the matter of the Insolvency Act 1986 which was filed in the Chancery Division of the High Court on 10 June.

§ Mr. Maude
[holding answer 9 November 1988]: Mr. Lawrence David Ziman and Mr. Walter Max Hoffman FCA were appointed on 10 June 1988 under the provisions of section 432 of the Companies Act 1985 to investigate and report on the affairs of James Ferguson Holdings plc. On 4 July 1988 the same inspectors were appointed under the provisions of section 442 of the Companies Act 1985 to investigate and report on the membership of that company. Also on 4 July, they were appointed under section 432 to investigate and report on the affairs of Barlow Clowes Gilt Managers Limited.
Mr. Ziman and Mr. Hoffman had previously been authorised on 13 November 1987 to exercise the powers conferred by section 105 of the Financial Services Act 1986 for the purposes of investigating the affairs of Barlow Clowes Gilt Managers Limited.
The investigations under the Companies Act have cost £186,385 to date. The investigation under the Financial Services Act has cost £186,931. The investigations under the Companies Act continue and I am unable to say when the inspectors will submit their report to the Secretary of State.
There is no statutory provision enabling the Secretary of State to publish Mr. Hoffman's affidavit or more generally enabling publication of reports submitted following the exercise of the powers conferred by section 105 of the Financial Services Act.