§ Mr. WattsTo ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster whether he has any proposals to reduce the burdens on public companies imposed under the accounting provisions of the Companies Act.
§ Mr. MaudeI have decided that the next Companies Bill should allow all listed public companies to supply shareholders with an abbreviated version of their annual report and accounts. The Bill will contain an enabling provision for regulations to be made subject to the negative resolution procedure, prescribing the minimum contents of these accounts and dealing with how they would be made available. Copies of the companies' full accounts would still have to be filed at the appropriate Companies Registration Office and be made available, as at present, free of charge to all shareholders who wanted to receive them. My Department will in due course issue a consultative document on the details of the regulations.