§ Mr. DonohoeTo ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) how much the Monopolies and Mergers Commission spent in carrying out its investigation into the acquisition of Chesterfield Transport (1989) Ltd. by Stagecoach Holdings plc under the provisions of the Fair Trading Act 1973; [38650]
(2) how much the Monopolies and Mergers Commission spent in carrying out its investigation into the acquisition of S.B. Holdings Ltd. by Stagecoach Holdings plc under the provisions of the Fair Trading Act 1973; [38652]
(3) how much the Monopolies and Mergers Commission spent in carrying out its investigation into the acquisition of Lancaster City Transport Ltd. by Stagecoach Holdings plc under the provisions of the Fair Trading Act 1973; [38654]
(4) how much the Monopolies and Mergers Commission spent in carrying out its investigation into the acquisition of Portsmouth Citybus Ltd. by Stagecoach Holdings plc under the provisions of the Fair Trading Act 1973; [38656]
204W(5) how much the Monopolies and Mergers Commission spent in carrying out its investigation into the acquisition of Ayrshire Bus Owners Ltd. by Stagecoach Holdings plc under the provisions of the Fair Trading Act 1973; [38651]
(6) how much the Monopolies and Mergers Commission spent in carrying out its investigation into the acquisition of Mainline Partnership Ltd. by Stagecoach Holdings plc under the provisions of the Fair Trading Act 1973; [38653]
(7) how much the Monopolies and Mergers Commission spent in carrying out its investigation into the acquisition of Formia Ltd. by Stagecoach Holdings plc under the provisions of the Fair Trading Act 1973. [38655]
Mr. John M. Taylor[holding answer 22 July 1996]: The estimated costs in carrying out the investigations are as follows:
- i Stagecoach Holdings plc/Lancaster City Transport Ltd.—£163,000
- ii Stagecoach Holdings plc/Portsmouth Citybus Ltd.—£131,000
- iii Stagecoach Holdings plc/Formia Ltd.—£68,000
- iv Stagecoach Holdings plc/S B Holdings Ltd.—£242,000
- v Stagecoach Holdings plc/Mainline Partnership Ltd.—£185,000
- vi Stagecoach Holdings plc/Ayrshire Bus Owners (A1 Service) Ltd.—£232,000
- vii Stagecoach Holdings plc/Chesterfield Transport (1989) Ltd.—£187,000
The MMC introduced revised costing and budgetary arrangements on 1 April 1995. Reported costs from this date are on accruals based accounts; those for earlier years are cash-based. In addition, overhead costs were attributed on an estimated basis for earlier years. The figures for the first five inquiries are therefore not directly comparable with those for the last two.
§ Mr. DonohoeTo ask the President of the Board of Trade how much Monopolies and Mergers Commission spent defending its actions against the application for judicial review in relation to the acquisition by Stagecoach Holdings plc of SB Holdings, the judgment in which case was made on 5 July. [38657]
Mr. John M. Taylor[holding answer 22 July 1996]: The court has awarded the Monopolies and Mergers Commission its costs in these proceedings. At this stage it is not yet clear how much the total spend on MMC legal costs will be. The MMC's spend to date in relation to counsel's fees is £7,495.
§ Mr. DonohoeTo ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) how much the Department of Trade and Industry spent in defending its actions against the petition for judicial review brought by Stagecoach Holdings plc in the Court of Session, the judgment in which case was made on 20 June; [38660]
(2) how much the Monopolies and Mergers Commission spent in defending its actions against the petition for judicial review brought by Stagecoach Holdings plc in the Court of Session in relation to the company's acquisition of A1 Service, the judgment in which case was made on 20 June. [38659]
Mr. John M. Taylor[holding answer 22 July 1996]: The court has awarded the Department and the Monopolies and Mergers Commission its costs in these 205W proceedings. The Department and the MMC were represented by the same counsel. Spend in relation to counsel's fees is about £25,800. Other legal costs have not yet been finalised.
§ Mr. DonohoeTo ask the President of the Board of Trade how much the Monopolies and Mergers Commission spent defending its actions against the application for judicial review in relation to the acquisition by Stagecoach Holdings plc of Mainline, the judgment in which case was made on 5 July. [38658]
Mr. John M. Taylor[holding answer 22 July 1996]: The court has awarded the Monopolies and Mergers Commission its costs in these proceedings. At this stage it is not yet clear how much the total spend on MMC legal costs will be. The MMC's spend to date in relation to counsel's fees is £8,533.