§ Mr. RedmondTo ask the President of the Board of Trade, pursuant to his answer of 18 January,Official Report, column 513, if he will make a statement on why Classic FM was used by his Department in its advertising campaign regarding the submission of company accounts; and what other media outlets his Department considered, or employed.
§ Mr. Neil HamiltonResponsiility for the subject has been delegated to the chief executive of the Companies House executive agency for which my Department is responsible. I have, therefore, asked Mr. David Durham to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from Mr. David Durham to Mr. Martin Redmond, dated 3 March 1994:
On 2 March you tabled the following Parliamentary Question: "To ask the President of the Board of Trade, pursuant to his Answer of 18th January, Official Report, column 513, if he will make a statement on why Classic FM was used by his Department in its advertising campaign regarding the submission of company accounts; and what other media outlets his Department considered, or employed.Following the answer given by Mr. Neil Hamilton MP, I am replying as Chief Executive of Companies House.I have made use of Classic FM because it was an appropriate radio station for a national filing awareness campaign, having the most appropriate demographic profile of the national commercial stations.As I commented in my previous letter, the introduction of Late Filing Penalties in July 1992 has provided a major boost to the completeness of the company register. However, many companies appear to remain unsure of their filing obligations and continue to file late.211WCompanies House does recognise that awareness of the legal obligations, which include dates by which company accounts must be filed, is an important aspect of the process of enabling companies to meet their obligations under the Companies Acts. We were deeply disappointed to learn from independent research that 55 per cent. of company directors did not know what their due dates were. We see it as our duty to ensure that we use all reasonable means to make the business community aware of the deadlines for filing all accounts and the mandatory penalties which apply.A variety of media are considered to ensure that company directors are aware of these facts and the penalties that apply. These include commercial radio, inserts in technical press, national press and direct reminders, all of which have been used at various times to good effect. In addition, as indicated in our winning Charter Mark submission, we attend roadshows, exhibitions, hold customer days, issue Notes for Guidance and provide a central enquiry unit.Independent market research is commissioned to monitor the effectiveness of our communications. Recent results indicated that 75 per cent. of accountants and 49 per cent. of companies thought it was important that Companies House should advertise to inform and remind companies of their due dates for filing.I hope this is helpful.