HC Deb 18 January 1994 vol 235 cc500-1W
Mr. Flynn

To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage if he will list all companies which have had grants from his Department written off since June 1992 and set out his reasons for the decisions.

Mr. Sproat

[holding answer 14 January 1994]: My Department has not written off any grants which it administers directly.

Under section 4 of the Development of Tourism Act 1969, the English Tourist Board has given financial assistance to projects providing or improving tourist amenities and facilities in England. As permitted by Act, the board attached conditions to the grants which allowed them to be recoverable, including bankruptcy/insolvency of the recipient. The board is required to surrender to my Department all the sums recovered. Any amount which proves to be irrecoverable has to be written off by the Department. Treasury approval is required where the amount is over £100,000 and for 20 per cent. of the value of cases assessed.

Since June 1992, grant reclaimable debts have been written off in respect of the following companies. The debts were irrecoverable by reason of receivership, liquidation or because the company was wound up:

Receivership

  • Ashbourne Lodge plc
  • Badgerealm Ltd.
  • Border Developments Ltd.
  • Callow Park Ltd.
  • Grosvenor Arms Hotel (Pulford) Ltd.
  • Marshall of Luton (Builders) Ltd.
  • Theme Holdings Ltd.
  • Wessex Farm Horse Centre Ltd.
  • White Lion Hotel (Banbury) Ltd.

Liquidation

  • Backbrook Ltd.
  • Bettematural Ltd.
  • Brighton Rackets Club Ltd.
  • E & P Hotels Ltd.
  • Horsley Hall Ltd.
  • National Jazz Centre Ltd.
  • Sal Investments Ltd.
  • Unicorn Heritage plc
  • West Country Transport and Plant Hire Ltd.

Voluntary wound up

  • Oxford Area Arts Council Ltd.

In addition to the English tourist board, the Department sponsors a number of non-departmental public bodies which make grants available as part of their activities. Responsibility for determining to whom grants are given, and the conditions attached, rests with the individual bodies. Where appropriate, these include the need for the recipient to repay the grant where compliance with the conditions has not been met. Responsibility for writing off any irrecoverable debts arising within certain limits rests with the sponsored bodies. Details of these are not held centrally and could only be obtained at a disproportionate cost. No cases outside the delegated limits have been submitted to the Department for approval.

Mr. Alan Williams

To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage in how many cases since 1987 tourist board grants have been written off as irrecoverable; how many were between £100,000 and £150,000, £150,000 and £199,000 and £200,000 or over; and what is the highest single amount written off.

Mr. Sproat

[holding answer 17 January 1994]: The figures for debts relating to grants made under section 4 of the Development of Tourism Act 1969 are shown separately for England, Scotland and Wales.

England Scotland Wales
Debts written off since 1987 53 39 13
£100,000 – £150,000 3 2 1
£150,000 – £199,000 3 0 0
£200,000 or above 2 0 0
Highest amount written off £759,039 £124,447 £100,000

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