§ Lord Hatch of Lusbyasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether the following figures for total company liquidations are correct:—
1975 5,398 1976 5,939 1977 5,831 1978 5,086 1979 4,537 1980 6,890 1981 4,559 (first six months)
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Lord Trefgarne)The annual figures for 1975 to 1980 for total company liquidations (compulsory and creditors' voluntary) are indeed correct. The figure of 4,559 quoted for the first half of 1981 is not compiled from official statistics and is understood to be calculated on a different basis. Owing to industrial action official figures of creditors' 99WA voluntary and hence total company liquidations are not available for individual months from April onwards so that a total for the first six months of 1981 cannot be given. Figures for the first nine months as a whole will be available shortly.