HC Deb 12 July 1982 vol 27 cc266-7W
Mrs. Renée Short

asked the Minister for Trade how many bankruptcies there were in (a) Wolverhampton and (b) the West Midlands in 1979, 1980, 1981 and to date in 1982.

Dr. Vaughan

As quarterly figures are not available on exactly the same basis as annual, a comparison is given in the following figures between the first quarters of 1981 and 1982.

Number of Bankruptcies
Net cases administered Wolverhampton West Midlands County (Includes Wolverhampton)
1979 15 153
1980 12 190
1981 22 217
Gross cases before deducting orders rescinded or consolidated
1981 1st quarter 2 53
1982 1st quarter 6 66

Miss Maynard

asked the Minister for Trade what percentage of companies have gone bankrupt in the last 12 months.

Dr. Vaughan

Company liquidations arising from insolvency were about 2 per cent. of the total number of companies estimated to be trading.