BHS sale and pensions: "worrying" timeline of BHS-TPR interaction published
23 May 2016
The Work and Pensions Committee has published the timeline of BHS interaction with the Pensions Regulator, while the Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) Committee has concurrently published correspondence from PwC (PricewaterhouseCoopers) and ICAEW (The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales) in relation to their inquiries on BHS.
Correspondence
The Committees published a series of new correspondence and evidence, including a "worrying" timeline of BHS interaction with the Pensions Regulator, Lesley Titcomb to Frank Field MP regarding timeline of TPR's actions (PDF 125KB)
BHS pensions:
- Lesley Titcomb to Frank Field MP regarding the Pensions Regulator inquiry into BHS (PDF 64KB)
- The Pensions Regulator to Arcadia Group regarding the BHS pension scheme (PDF 138KB)
- The Pensions Regulator to Deloitte to set up a meeting (PDF 92KB)
- The Pensions Regulator to Arcadia Group regarding the BHS pensions scheme 5 March 2015 (PDF 624KB)
- Inquiry: Pension Protection Fund and Pensions Regulator
- Work and Pensions Committee
The sale of BHS:
Richard Fuller MP, BIS Committee member, wrote to PwC, auditors to BHS, to raise questions relating to the timing of the auditor's report and the sale of BHS Limited. Richard Fuller also wrote to the ICAEW with broader questions on auditing practice.
- Email from the Independent Trustees Ltd to Deloitte regarding BHS sale (PDF 66KB)
- ICAEW to Richard Fuller MP, 20 May 2016
- PWC to Richard Fuller MP, 20 May 2016
- Richard Fuller MP to Deborah Karmel, 13 May 2016
- Richard Fuller MP to Michael Izza, 13 May 2016,
- Inquiry: The sale and acquisition of BHS
- Business, Innovation and Skills Committee
Chair's comment:
Frank Field MP, Chair of the Work and Pensions Committee, said:
"This information paints a worrying picture of the last 18 months of Sir Philip Green's tenure at BHS. A solution superior to where BHS and its pension scheme has ended up may have been available, but for whatever reason it was not achieved. The timeline poses further questions for all the major players. Was the Regulator as passive, slow-moving and shut out as it appears? And where did the trustees and the fleets of advisers to all sides fit in the web? Why was Arcadia Group not more forthcoming with the information requested by the Regulator and trustees?
We will be hearing from Arcadia and its advisers today and from the pension scheme trustees on Wednesday. We will question them on these developments. We will also need to put more questions to, and demand more documents from, the Regulator."
Further information
Image: PA