§ Mr. Loveridgeasked the Secretary of State for Trade (1) what is the estimated cost of processing the returns of accounts for each company by the Registrar of Companies in respect of receiving the documents;
(2) what is the estimated cost of processing the returns of accounts for each company by the Registrar of Companies in respect of filing the documents;
(3) what is the estimated cost of processing the returns of accounts for each company by the Registrar of Companies in respect of examining the documents;
(4) what is the estimated cost of processing the returns of accounts for each company by the Registrar of Companies in respect of dealing with delays;
(5) what is the estimated cost of processing the returns of accounts for each company by the Registrar of Companies in respect of usefully using the documents.
§ Mr. Clinton DavisNo separate figures are maintained for the costs of processing returns of accounts under the Companies Acts 1948 to 1967. As for provisions in the Companies (No. 2) Bill for expediting the filing of accounts, although it is not possible to isolate costs in the detail requested, the cost of dealing with the processing of returns of accounts is likely to average some 50–60p a year per company.