A REPORT by MPs into the demise of BHS has concluded that while it does not doubt that former owner Philip Green “has heartfelt affection for BHS”, he, alongside the man that he sold the company to past year, Dominic Chappell, “and their respective directors, advisers and hangers-on”, including barrister Anthony Grabiner who oversaw the sale, “are all culpable” in the demise of the high-street chain. He also admitted it was a mistake to sell BHS to Mr Chappell. The government said on Saturday the honour was under review.
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The business was sold with a £571 million (NZ$1billion plus) hole in its pension fund, which if not filled will leave 20,000 pensioners facing significant cuts to their income.
Of course, BHS is in the process of closing down, in what the report referred to as the “shambolic” ownership of Dominic Chappell, who bought the chain from Green for £1, with MPs adding that he was “manifestly unsuitable” as a buyer.
It found the former owner of the chain had “systematically extracted hundreds of millions of pounds from BHS, paying very little tax and fantastically enriching himself and his family, leaving the company and its pension fund weakened to the point of the inevitable collapse of both”.
A parliamentary inquiry will publish its report on Monday into the demise of BHS, which caused up to 11,000 job losses.
All of this comes days after the Cabinet Office disclosed that it will be reviewing Sir Philip’s knighthood.
The Prime Minister’s spokeswoman said she planned to “tackle corporate irresponsibility” and do more to prevent “irresponsible and reckless behaviour”.
The report reserved the fiercest criticism for Sir Philip.
He also accused the business mogul of “behaving like Napoleon”, following a joint report into the collapse of BHS by the Business, Innovation and Skills committee and Mr Field’s team of MPs.
When a scheme falls on the PPF, members who have yet to retire are hit with a 10% cut to their pension.
Speaking to the BBC, the co-chair of an inquiry into BHS compared Sir Philip unfavourably to late media magnate Robert Maxwell, who took millions from the Mirror Group’s pension funds.
‘Sir Philip Green has no excuse for being so apparently unaware of his responsibilities towards the company pension scheme and it is now time for action to deal with the problem’.
“I think that is worse because he has it in his power to do things. The music stopped while there was no money there”.
Labour MP Iain Wright, chairman of the BIS committee, said Sir Philip needs to “write a big cheque” to sort out the “enormous” pension deficit.
Lord Kerslake, who chaired the Honours Forfeiture Committee at the time when it stripped banker Fred Goodwin of his knighthood, was asked whether the same should be done with Sir Philip.
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“There are a significant number of people directly affected, and we will continue to support the staff in any way we can”.
