§ 103. Mr. Stevensasked the President of. the Board of Trade by what authority the Registrar of Business Names, Bush House, Strand, London, W.C.2, has issued leaflet R. 19, of which Note 7, of the section dealing with names, places upon the applicant the onus of showing that a name is desirable, whereas Section 116 (1) of the Companies Act, 1947, places no such onus upon the applicant, but, on the contrary, only permits the Registrar to refuse registration where he satisfies himself, in any particular case, that a name is undesirable.
Mr. H. WilsonThe leaflet to which the hon. Member refers has no statutory effect but contains notes which are given for the guidance of the public and is, in fact, headed "Notes for guidance." Note 7 is to the effect that names which include a proper name which is not the name of the proprietors will not be allowed except for valid reasons. The Registrar has, in many cases, taken the view that, in the absence of valid reasons, the use by an applicant of a name which is not his own is undesirable.