§ Mr. SpellerTo ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many franchising companies he estimates there are in the United Kingdom retail sales and service sector; how many of these have been the subject of any investigation by his Department; and if he will make a statement upon the growth of the franchisor and franchisee business in the past 10 years.
§ Mr. ForthThere are no official statistics. Private studies estimate that there are some 230 business format franchisors with some 16,000 franchisees. Separate records252W are not kept of the number of franchise businesses investigated by the Department. A properly constructed franchise business operation can encourage enterprise.