§ Mr. John BrowneTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what measures are contained in the British Telecom licence relating to protection of the rights of the present shareholders, and to protection of customers against an effective offshore-owned monopoly, in the event of relocation of BT's domicile overseas; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Redwood[holding answer 12 June 1991]: BT is subject to strong controls through its licence conditions, the regulatory powers exercised by OFTEL and general competition law. These apply irrespective of who the shareholders are and where the company's offices are located. The Government hold a special share in BT which protects certain provisions in the company's articles of association. These include a provision imposing a 15 per cent. limit on individual shareholdings.