§ Mr. RiddickTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when publication of the revised edition of the companies inspection handbook, as recommended by the Select Committee on Trade and Industry, will occur.
§ Mr. RedwoodIn our White Paper responding to the report of the Select Committee we undertook to publish a revised edition in the early autumn. The new edition, now called the "Investigation Handbook", to reflect its extended coverage, was published this morning and replaces the earlier publication last revised in 1986. It takes account of recent legislative developments including the Companies Act 1989, the Financial Services Act 1986 and the Insolvency Act 1986 as well as incorporating points made by the Government in their response to the Select Committee.
The handbook describes the powers of investigation of the Secretary of State and includes procedural guidance for inspectors under the Companies Acts and under section 177 of the Financial Services Act 1986—inquiries into possible insider dealing. I expect that the handbook, like its predecessor, will be extensively used by my Department, inspectors, regulatory authorities, witnesses at inquiries and their legal advisers, academic staff and the public generally.
The Secretary of State's powers of investigation play an important part in the Department's objective of increasing confidence in the working of markets by achieving a fair level of protection for the individual consumer and investor.