§ Mr. David ShawTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many times in the last five years he has used his powers to disenfranchise voting rights in the shares of United Kingdom companies; and in how many of those cases the shares have been identified as being held by beneficial or nominee owners based in(a) Jersey, (b) Guernsey, (c) the Isle of Man, (d) the Netherlands Antilles, (e) the Cayman Islands and (1) Liechtenstein.
§ Mr. RedwoodSeven orders imposing restrictions (since removed) on shares, including the prohibition of the exercise of voting rights, have been made during the period, all in relation to the current section 442 Companies Act 1985 investigation into Consolidated Gold Fields plc. In one case the restrictions were imposed on shares registered in the name of a United Kingdom company and held by it to the order of a Cayman Islands company. The investigation is continuing and it would be inappropriate for me to comment further.