§ Mr. RedmondTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what are the current requirements of companies to be registered; with whom they must register; and how many companies are so registered.
§ Mr. Neil HamiltonMost Great Britain companies are formed and registered under the Companies Act 1985. They are registered by the Registrar of Companies either in England and Wales or in Scotland
733WUnder the Act there are a number of requirements to be met before a company is registered. The following documents must be delivered to the Registrar:—
the company's memorandum and articles;particulars of its directors, secretary and intended registered office;a statutory declaration that all the requirments of the Act in respect of registration have been complied with.The Registrar may not register a company unless he is satisfied that all such requirements have been complied with, but he may accept the statutory declaration as sufficient evidence of this. He will then issue a certificate of incorporation.
At 31 March 1993 there were 1,136,400 registered companies in Great Britain, of which 175,800 were in liquidation, or in the course of being removed from the register.