HC Deb 23 July 1997 vol 298 cc672-3W
Miss Melanie Johnson

To ask the President of the Board of Trade how many insolvency practitioners are currently licensed by her Department; and what was the number five years ago. [9823]

Mr. Nigel Griffiths

The Secretary of State currently authorises 133 insolvency practitioners. In 1992, the corresponding figure was 148.

Miss Johnson

To ask the President of the Board of Trade how many practitioners appointed by the Insolvency Service have been discharged from Insolvency Service work over each of the last 10 years. [9822]

Mr. Griffiths

Practitioners may be appointed by the Secretary of State to act as liquidator in a compulsory liquidation or as trustee in a bankruptcy. In such cases, the practitioner may be removed either by an order of court or by a meeting of creditors summoned specially for that purpose or by the Secretary of State. Records of the number of cases where a practitioner has been removed are not maintained, but there have been few cases in the past 10 years where the Secretary of State has removed a liquidator or trustee.

Miss Johnson

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what arrangements she has put in place to monitor the performance of insolvency practitioners appointed by the Insolvency Service; and on what basis their fees are(a) set and (b) regulated. [9821]

Mr. Griffiths

Insolvency practitioners appointed by the Secretary of State are, in common with all authorised insolvency practitioners, subject to a formal programme of monitoring visits by their authorising body. The visits are intended to assess whether a practitioner is fit and proper and to promote compliance with statutory obligations and best practice.

The fees of insolvency practitioners in liquidations and bankruptcies are subject to the approval of the liquidation committee or creditors committee respectively or by the creditors in general meetings. If there is no committee and no resolution of the creditors, the practitioner is entitled to be paid in accordance with the scale corresponding to what would have been paid to the official receiver if he were acting as liquidator or trustee. If either the liquidator or the creditors are dissatisfied with the level at which the remuneration has been fixed, there is provision for an application to be made to the court for the amount to be varied.