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515916

	registered interest
	date	26/04/2016
	answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
	answering dept id	26
	answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
	answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
	hansard heading	British Home Stores: Insolvency
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Statement by the Business Minister, Anna Soubry, on 25 April (HC Deb, col 1174), what assistance they plan to offer BHS or Retail Acquisitions.
	tabling member printed	Lord Myners
	uin	HL7982
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/05/2016 answer text Workers and their families will be worried by the news that BHS has been placed in the hands of administrators. The Administrator must secure the best possible result for the business, starting with rescuing it if possible as a going concern. If this does not prove possible, then we stand ready to help those affected, including through Jobcentre Plus’ Rapid Response Service, to help people move into new jobs as quickly as possible. answering member printed Baroness Neville-Rolfe question first answered 10/05/2016 14:49:46 answering member 4284 label Biography information for Baroness Neville-Rolfe
	tabling member	3869 label Biography information for Lord Myners

515523

	registered interest
	date	25/04/2016
	answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
	answering dept id	26
	answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
	answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
	hansard heading	British Home Stores: Insolvency
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will establish an inquiry into the circumstances surrounding BHS being placed in administration, and in particular in to the implications for employees, pension scheme members and creditors.
	tabling member printed	Lord Myners
	uin	HL7903
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/05/2016 answer text <p>When a company enters administration, the administrators have to report to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills within three months on the conduct of the directors.</p><p>In the case of BHS the Insolvency Service is making early contact with the administrators to discuss the directors’ conduct and to consider whether further steps, such as a detailed investigation, may be necessary.</p><p>Where misconduct is established it can lead to disqualification of a director for between 2 and 15 years.</p> answering member printed Baroness Neville-Rolfe question first answered 03/05/2016 11:39:50 answering member 4284 label Biography information for Baroness Neville-Rolfe
	tabling member	3869 label Biography information for Lord Myners

515522

	registered interest
	date	25/04/2016
	answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
	answering dept id	26
	answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
	answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
	hansard heading	Insolvency
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will review the legislation protecting creditors in the event of business failure.
	tabling member printed	Lord Myners
	uin	HL7902
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/05/2016 answer text <p>We do keep insolvency legislation under review. We seek to ensure that the legislative framework strikes the right balance between rescuing a business, which may also save jobs, and the rights of creditors who may lose out financially.</p> answering member printed Baroness Neville-Rolfe question first answered 10/05/2016 11:36:46 answering member 4284 label Biography information for Baroness Neville-Rolfe
	tabling member	3869 label Biography information for Lord Myners

515524

	registered interest
	date	25/04/2016
	answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
	answering dept id	26
	answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
	answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
	hansard heading	British Home Stores: Insolvency
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have had any talks with the owners, managers or advisers to BHS; and whether they will take any action to protect employees, creditors and pensioners.
	tabling member printed	Lord Myners
	uin	HL7904
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/05/2016 answer text <p>This is a worrying time for the BHS workforce and their families.</p><p>I understand that there are no plans for immediate store closures and that the administrators are looking to sell BHS as a going concern.</p><p>Clearly if this proves not to be possible, then we stand ready to help those affected, including through Jobcentre Plus’ Rapid Response Service, to help people move into new jobs as quickly as possible.</p><p>The Insolvency Service continues to liaise with the administrators, and stands ready to provide statutory assistance to employees in the event that the commercial situation changes.</p><p>I understand that the BHS schemes are in the early stages of a Pension Protection Fund (PPF) assessment period, during which the PPF will determine the final funding position of the scheme and whether it should assume responsibility for a scheme. We cannot comment on this, or any other individual case directly.</p> answering member printed Baroness Neville-Rolfe question first answered 03/05/2016 11:39:14 answering member 4284 label Biography information for Baroness Neville-Rolfe
	tabling member	3869 label Biography information for Lord Myners

522877

	registered interest
	date	06/06/2016
	answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
	answering dept id	26
	answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
	answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
	hansard heading	Central African Republic: Peace Negotiations
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact on graduates of freezing the income level at which student loans become repayable, and what estimate they have made of the number of students who would be rendered liable if that level were frozen.
	tabling member printed	Lord Myners
	uin	HL428
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/06/2016 answer text <p>The impact of freezing the repayment threshold for 5 years was described in the government’s consultation document, which was published in July 2015.</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/freezing-the-student-loan-repayment-threshold" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/freezing-the-student-loan-repayment-threshold</a></p><p> </p><p>Those who earn above the £21,000 threshold can expect to repay nearly £6 extra per week by 2021 (in 2021 prices), or around £306 per year.</p><p> </p><p>We expect that an additional 9% of graduates will start to repay as a result of the threshold freeze. This equates to 190,000 of the 2.1 million Plan 2 graduates expected to be in repayment by 2020/21.</p><p> </p><p>The £21,000 threshold remains higher in real terms than that applicable to student loans taken out before 2012.</p> answering member printed Baroness Evans of Bowes Park question first answered 15/06/2016 15:13:19 answering member 4329 label Biography information for Baroness Evans of Bowes Park attachment 1 file name HL428 - student-loan-repayment-threshold-consultation.pdf title student-loan-repayment-threshold-consultation
	tabling member	3869 label Biography information for Lord Myners

523690

	registered interest
	date	07/06/2016
	answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
	answering dept id	26
	answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
	answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
	hansard heading	Trees: Urban Areas
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, in the light of the current situation facing the UK's retail industry, they will reconsider their decision not to publish the report by the Insolvency Service into the collapse of Comet Group plc.
	tabling member printed	Lord Myners
	uin	HL505
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/06/2016 answer text <p>The Insolvency Service’s fact-finding inquiry into Comet was conducted under Section 447 of the Companies Act 1985. Section 449 of that Act makes it a criminal offence to share any information gathered in the course of the investigation with any person, other than in the strictly prescribed circumstances laid out in the Act.</p><p> </p><p>In the light of this legal position I am unable to reconsider the request to publish the report.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member printed Baroness Neville-Rolfe question first answered 15/06/2016 14:49:25 answering member 4284 label Biography information for Baroness Neville-Rolfe
	tabling member	3869 label Biography information for Lord Myners

516408

	registered interest
	date	27/04/2016
	answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
	answering dept id	26
	answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
	answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
	hansard heading	Comet Group: Insolvency
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will publish the report produced by the Insolvency Service on the collapse of the Comet Group, and whether they will take that report into account when conducting any review of the circumstances leading to the collapse of BHS.
	tabling member printed	Lord Myners
	uin	HL8046
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/05/2016 answer text <p>The Insolvency Service investigated Comet under provisions of the Companies Act, which means it is not possible to publish the report.</p><p>The Insolvency Service continuously builds on the experience gained in all its investigations to inform its work.</p> answering member printed Baroness Neville-Rolfe question first answered 05/05/2016 15:33:24 answering member 4284 label Biography information for Baroness Neville-Rolfe
	tabling member	3869 label Biography information for Lord Myners

522876

	registered interest
	date	06/06/2016
	answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
	answering dept id	26
	answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
	answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
	hansard heading	Russia: Jehovah's Witnesses
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will consider linking the interest rate on student loans to the Consumer Price Index rather than the Retail Price Index.
	tabling member printed	Lord Myners
	uin	HL427
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/06/2016 answer text <p>The Government has no plans to link the interest rate on student loans to the Consumer Prices Index, rather than the Retail Prices Index. The Retail Prices Index has been used as the basis for calculating the interest rates applied to income-contingent student loans since they were introduced in 1998.</p> answering member printed Baroness Neville-Rolfe question first answered 16/06/2016 12:32:49 answering member 4284 label Biography information for Baroness Neville-Rolfe
	tabling member	3869 label Biography information for Lord Myners

156561

	registered interest
	date	19/11/2014
	answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
	answering dept id	26
	answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
	answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
	hansard heading	Quindell
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are investigating Quindell plc and its board of directors and financial advisers; and if not, whether they plan to do so.
	tabling member printed	Lord Myners
	uin	HL2984
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/12/2014 answer text <p>Quindell plc is Alternative Investment Market (AIM) listed which is controlled by London Stock Exchange and any enquiry relating to possible market abuse sits within the remit of the Financial Conduct Authority.</p><p> </p><p>The Government’s Insolvency Service has discretionary powers under the Companies Acts to conduct enquiries on behalf of the Secretary of State where it appears that there has been misconduct in relation to the affairs of any company, including those not subject to formal insolvency.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>For the investigation process to be effective it is essential to maintain confidentiality at all stages and there is also a need to protect the commercial interest of companies against the danger of damage from malicious complaints. For these reasons there are legal restrictions on disclosing information obtained during an enquiry and The Service does not confirm or deny whether an investigation of a particular company is taking place.</p><p> </p><p>Where other regulators and investigating agencies are involved, the Insolvency Service would liaise closely to ensure public money is not wasted duplicating resources.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member printed Baroness Neville-Rolfe question first answered 01/12/2014 12:09:55 answering member 4284 label Biography information for Baroness Neville-Rolfe
	tabling member	3869 label Biography information for Lord Myners

175415

	registered interest
	date	23/01/2015
	answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
	answering dept id	26
	answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
	answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
	hansard heading	Bank Services: St Agnes
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will take steps to ensure the continued presence of commercial retail banking services in St Agnes, Cornwall; and whether they will investigate proposals by Barclays to close the only remaining retail banking branch in that area.
	tabling member printed	Lord Myners
	uin	HL4401
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/02/2015 answer text <p>Officials at the Department for Business have discussed with Barclays the rationale for the proposed closure of its branch in St Agnes. Ultimately, however, the decision on whether to retain a branch in the town is a matter for the management of the bank who will need to balance customer interests, market competition and other commercial factors.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The Government, nonetheless, recognises that bank branch closures can have a significant impact on customers, particularly vulnerable customers such as the elderly, the disabled, those on low incomes, and small businesses. It is therefore pressing the banking sector to finalise a new branch closure protocol.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The Government is also clear that there is an important role to play for Post Office in maintaining communities’ physical access to banking services. Barclays (and most other banks) have commercial arrangements in place with Post Office allowing personal current account customers to withdraw money and deposit cash and cheques at Post Office branches, including the one in St Agnes. Approximately 95% of UK personal account customers are already able to access banking services at the Post Office, and negotiations are underway to increase this coverage to closer to 100%.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member printed Baroness Neville-Rolfe question first answered 09/02/2015 17:24:47 answering member 4284 label Biography information for Baroness Neville-Rolfe
	tabling member	3869 label Biography information for Lord Myners