Insolvency Oracle

Developments in UK insolvency by Michelle Butler

Tag Archives: Insolvency Regulation


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Are regulators reacting to the Insolvency Service’s gaze?

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In this post, I analyse the Insolvency Service’s annual review of IP regulation, asking the following questions:

  • Are the regulators visiting their IPs once every three years?
  • How likely is it that a monitoring visit will result in some kind of negative outcome?
  • How likely is a targeted visit?
  • Has the Complaints Gateway led to more complaints?
  • What are the chances of an IP receiving a complaint?
  • How likely is it that a complaint will result in a sanction?

The Insolvency Service’s reports can be found at: http://goo.gl/MZHeHK.  As I did last year (http://wp.me/p2FU2Z-6C), I have only focussed attention on the authorising bodies with the largest number of IPs (but included stats for the others in the figures for “all”) and only in relation to appointment-taking IPs.  Again, regrettably, I don’t see how I can embed the graphs into this page, so they can be found at: Graphs 23-04-15.  You might find it easier to read the full article along with the graphs here(2).

 

Monitoring Visits

  • Are the regulators visiting their IPs once every three years?

Graph (i) (here(2)) looks at how much of each regulator’s population has been visited each year:

Is it a coincidence that the two regulators that were visited by the Service last year – the ACCA and the Service’s own monitoring team – have both reported huge changes in monitoring visit numbers?  Of course, this graph also shows that those two regulators carried out significantly less monitoring visits in 2013, so perhaps they were already conscious that they had some catching-up to do.

I’m not convinced that it was the Service’s visit that prompted ACCA’s increase in inspections: the Service’s February 2015 report on its 2014 visits to the ACCA did not disclose any concerns regarding the visit cycle and I think it is noteworthy that ACCA had a lull in visits in 2010, so perhaps the 2013 trough simply reflects the natural cycle.  Good on the Insolvency Service, though, for exerting real efforts, it seems, to get through lots of monitoring visits in 2014!

The trend line is interesting and reflects, I think, the shifting expectations.  The Service’s Principles for Monitoring continue to set the standard of a monitoring visit once every three years with a long-stop date of six years if the regulator employs satisfactory risk assessment processes.  However, I think most regulators now profess to carry out 3-yearly visits as the norm and most seem to be achieving something near this.

The ICAEW seems a little out-of-step with the other regulators, though.  At their 2014 rate, it would take 4½ years to get around all their IPs.  The report does explain, however, that the ICAEW also carried out 32 other reviews, most of which were “phone reviews” to new appointment-taking IPs.  The Service hasn’t counted these in the stats as true visits, so neither have I.

 

  • How likely is it that a monitoring visit will result in some kind of negative outcome?

Graph (ii) (here(2)) lumps together all the negative outcomes arising from monitoring visits: further visits ordered; undertakings and confirmations; penalties, referrals for disciplinary consideration; plans for improvement; compliance/self-certification reviews requested; and licence withdrawals (3 in 2014).

It’s spiky, but you can see that, overall around 1 in 4 visits in 2014 ended up with some kind of action needed.

Above this line, ACCA and ICAEW reported the most negative outcomes.  Most of the ACCA’s negative outcomes related to the ordering of a further visit (20% of their visits).  The majority of ICAEW’s negative outcomes related to the request for a compliance review (16% of their visits).  Of course, ICAEW IPs are required to carry out compliance reviews every year in any event.  I understand that this category involves the ICAEW specifically asking to see and consider the following year’s compliance review and/or requiring that the review be carried out by an external provider, where weaknesses in the IP’s internal review system have been identified.

I find ICAS’ flat-line rather interesting: for two years now, they have not reported any negative outcome from monitoring visits.  The Service had scheduled a visit to ICAS in April this year, so I’ll be interested to see the results of that.

 

  • How likely is a targeted visit?

Let’s take a closer look at ACCA’s ordering of further visits (graph (iii) here(2)): is this a new behaviour?

The 2015 estimated figures are based on the outcomes reported for the 2014 visits, although of course some could already have occurred in 2014.

ACCA seems to be treading a path all its own: the other RPBs – and now even the Service – don’t seem to favour targeted visits.

 

Complaints

 

  •  Has the Complaints Gateway led to more complaints?

It’s hard to tell.  The Service’s first-year report on the Complaints Gateway said that, as it had received 941 complaints in its first 12 months – and by comparison, 748 and 578 complaints were made direct to the regulators in 2013 and 2012 respectively – “it may be that this increase in complaints reflects the improvement in accessibility and increased confidence in the simplification of the complaints process”.

However, did the pre-Gateway figures reflect all complaints received by each regulator or only those that made it through the front-line filter?  If it is the latter, then the Gateway comparison figure is 699, not 941, which means that fewer complaints were received via the Gateway than previously (or at least for 2013), as this graph (iv) (here(2)) demonstrates.

The stats for 2013 are a mixture: for half of the year, the regulators were receiving the complaints direct and for the second half of the year the Gateway was in operation.  It seems to me that the Service has changed it reporting methodology: for the 2013 report, the stats were the total complaints made per regulator, but in 2014 the report refers to the complaints referred to each regulator.

Therefore, I don’t think we can draw any conclusions, as we don’t know on what basis the regulators were reporting complaints before the Gateway.  We cannot even say with confidence that the number of complaints received in 2013/14 is significantly higher than in 2012 and earlier, as this graph suggests, because it may be that the regulators were filtering out more complaints than the Gateway is currently.

About all we can say is that marginally fewer complaints were referred from the Gateway for the second half of 2014 than for the first half.

 

  • What are the chances of an IP receiving a complaint?

Of course, complaints aren’t something that can be spread evenly across the IP population: some IPs work in a more contentious field, others in high profile work, which may attract more attention than others.  The Service’s report mentioned that the IPA is still dealing with 34 complaints from 2012/2013 that relate to the same IVA practice.

However, graph (v) (here(2)) may give you an idea of where you sit.

This illustrates that, if complaints were spread evenly, half of all IPs would receive one complaint each year – and this figure hasn’t changed a great deal over the past few years.

As I mentioned last year, I do wonder if this graph illustrates the deterrent value of RPB sanctions: given that the Service has no power to order disciplinary sanctions on the back of complaints, perhaps it is not surprising that, year after year, SoS-authorised IPs have clocked up the most complaints.  I believe that the IPA’s 2013 peak may have had something to do with the delayed IVA completion issue (as I understand that the IPA licenses the majority of IPs specialising in IVAs).  It’s good to see that this is on the way down.

I am also interested in the low number of complaints recorded by ICAS-licensed IPs: maybe this justifies their flat-lined actions on monitoring visits explained above: maybe their IPs are just more well-behaved!  Or does it reflect that individuals involved in Scottish insolvency procedures may have somewhere else to go with their complaints: the Accountant in Bankruptcy?  Although the AiB website refers complainants to the RPB (shouldn’t this be to the Gateway?), it also states that they can write to the AiB and it seems to me that the AiB’s statutory supervisory role could create a fuzzy line.

 

  • How likely is it that a complaint will result in a sanction?

Although at first glance, this graph (vi) (here(2)) appears to show that the RPBs “perform” similarly when it comes to deciding on sanctions, it does show that, on average, the IPA issues sanctions on almost twice as many complaints when compared with the average over the RPBs as a whole.  Also, it seems that IPA-licensed IPs are seven times more likely to be sanctioned on the back of a complaint than ICAEW-licensed IPs.  The ACCA figure seems odd: no sanctions at all were reported for 2014.

Of the 43 complaints sanctions reported in 2014, 35 were issued by the IPA: that’s 82% of all sanctions.  That’s a hefty proportion, considering that the IPA licenses only 34% of all appointment-taking IPs.  It is no wonder that, at last week’s IPA conference, David Kerr commented on the complaints sanction stats and stressed the need for the RPBs to be working, and disclosing, consistently on complaints-handling.

 

Overview

Finally, let’s look at the negative outcomes from monitoring visits and complaints sanctions together (graph (vii) here(2)).

Of course, this doesn’t reflect the severity of the outcomes: included here is anything from an unpublicised warning (when the RPB discloses them to the Service) to a licence withdrawal. And, despite what I said earlier about the timing of the Service’s visit to the ACCA, I am still tempted to suggest that perhaps the Service’s visits have pushed the regulators – the Insolvency Service’s monitoring team and ACCA – into action, as those two regulators have recorded significant jumps in activity over the past year.

The Service has a busy year planned: full monitoring visits to ICAEW, ICAS, CARB, LSS and SRA (although that may be scaled back given the decision for the SRA to pull out of IP-licensing), and a follow up visit to ACCA.  No visit planned to the IPA?  Perhaps that suggests that the Service is looking as closely at these stats as I am.


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ACCA and Insolvency Service monitoring: poles apart?

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The Insolvency Service has released two reports on its own IP-monitoring team and one on ACCA’s monitoring, but is the Insolvency Service playing fair?  Is it applying double standards and how sensible are its demands of authorising bodies?

The reports can be found at: http://goo.gl/A7mXxJ

 

The Insolvency Service’s monitoring of the Insolvency Service’s monitoring

No, I’ve not copied-and-pasted by mistake: in April/May 2014, the Insolvency Service carried out a monitoring visit of its own monitoring team, i.e. the team that deals with Secretary of State-authorised IPs (“IPS”).

The report issued on 29 August 2014 identified some “serious weaknesses”, leading to a decision to make a follow-up visit three months later.  This occurred in January 2015 – not seriously tardy, I guess (although not a great example to the Team, given that late monitoring visits on IPs was the most serious weakness identified in the first visit) – and the report on the follow-up visit has now been released.

The recent report makes no reference to any further visits or follow-up actions, although the summary discloses a number of wriggle-phrases: “IPS has implemented, or made progress against, all the recommendations…  IPS has moved towards…  IPS has plans in place to address this…”  Would the Insolvency Service be satisfied if an RPB had made such “progress” towards goals?  Or would the Service be content for an RPB to accept such assurances from an IP who had only “moved towards” rectifying matters?

Catching up on overdue monitoring visits

To be fair, there did seem to be significant progress with the key issue – that as at May 2014 over half of their IPs had not had a visit in the past three years.  The report disclosed that, of the 28 IPs that had been identified from the 2014 review as overdue a visit, most had been visited or would be visited by May 2015.  The remaining five IPs had been asked to complete a pre-visit questionnaire, and the IPS planned to consider these on a risk basis and “if appropriate, schedule a prompt monitoring visit”.

It is evident from the report, however, that the only visits carried out by the Team since their 2014 review had been to IPs who were already overdue a visit.  Thus, I’m wondering, how many more IPs’ three years were up between April/May 2014 and now and is the Team constantly chasing their tails?  Of course, we expect SoS-authorisations to go in the future (although the De-regulation Bill provides a run-down period of another year), so is this really something to get excited about?  My issue is with the consistency of standards that I expect the Insolvency Service to apply to all licensing/authorising bodies.

“Independent” decision-making

The report makes reference to the introduction of “a layer of independence to its authorisation and monitoring process”.  This refers to the fact that the Section Head now decides on actions following monitoring visits and reauthorisations – with the benefit of a copy of the last monitoring report (which seems pointless to me: if the monitor’s findings were not such that they merited withdrawal of the IP’s authorisation, on what basis would they merit withholding reauthorisation up to a year later?).  Is the Section Head really independent?  I accept that the Insolvency Service structure (and budget) does not provide for the levels of independence possible for RPBs, but, again, I do feel that the Service is applying double standards here, especially given its report on ACCA below.

 

The Insolvency Service’s report on ACCA

The Service’s review of ACCA revealed “some weaknesses” and it is planning a follow-up visit within three to six months.  ACCA has rejected two of the Service’s recommendations.

Early-day monitoring visits

I was surprised to read the Service write so negatively about early monitoring visits.  About monitoring visits occurring within the first 12 months of the IP’s licence, it writes: “There is no evidence of these initial visits being conducted in accordance with the PfM [Principles for Monitoring]; instead, these appear to be conducted as courtesy visits”.  ACCA has asked the Service to clarify what is intended by the recommendation, given that a full scope visit is always completed within the IP’s first three years.  ACCA points to the PfM’s risk-based approach to early visits and states that it “will consider whether it should discontinue introductory visits in the future, given the Insolvency Service’s comments which suggest they are of little value.”

I know that ACCA is not the only RPB that carries out less-than-full-scope early visits, so I am wondering if we will see a shift from all those RPBs.

Personally, I feel that the Insolvency Service is taking the wrong tack here.  When I was at the IPA, I monitored new IPs’ caseloads to see when their first inspection visit looked appropriate.  I also took into consideration other factors: were they working in an office with other IPs?  If so, what were their track records?  Were they hitting the radar of the Complaints Department?  What did their self certifications look like?  But often a key question was: was their caseload building at such a rate that a visit would be useful?  Very often, new IPs take on very few cases and, on the basis of caseload alone, it is usually around 18 months before a proper visit can be conducted.

Nevertheless, I think that there is value in conducting an early visit.  Calling it a “courtesy visit” is a little unfair, I’m sure.  ACCA responded that “the purpose of these visits is to assist insolvency practitioners to ensure they have adequate procedures in place to carry out their work”.  And that’s the point, isn’t it?  It may be too early to see how the IP is really going to perform, but early-days are a good opportunity to see how geared-up the IP is, explore their attitude towards compliance and ethics versus profit, and perhaps even help them.  Is it sensible to criticise ACCA for not evidencing that an early-day visit has been conducted in the same way as a full visit?  If RPBs are discouraged – or prohibited – from carrying out introductory visits, compliance with the PfM would indicate that the RPB simply needs to record the decision that a full visit in the first 12 months is not necessary and then bump the IP to the 3-year point.  Is that better regulation?

Extensive monitoring reports

I have sympathy with ACCA as regards the Insolvency Service’s next criticism.  The report explains that ACCA’s monitoring reports describe the main areas of concern, but not the areas examined where no concerns were generated.  The Service recommended that “ACCA consider expanding their monitoring reports to include all information obtained during the monitoring process, including areas of no concern to provide a clear audit trail”.

Interestingly, the Insolvency Service’s 2014 report on its own monitoring came up with a similar recommendation, although in 2014 the Service’s recommendation appeared more dogmatic: “Ensuring that monitoring reports include all of the information obtained during the monitoring process, not just in relation to areas of concern; any areas where there are no concerns may be summarised.  The reports should also include the bonding information on each case.”  My original notes in the margin of that report expressed “Why?!”  I certainly don’t see why bonding information always needs to be recorded and I struggle to see how all information obtained could be sensibly written down.  When I review cases, I scribble pages of notes, summarising key facts and events in the case’s lifecycle, such as key Proposal terms and modifications, mainly so that I can see if these points are followed through over time.  As my review questions are answered satisfactorily, I move on; if I had to summarise all this information in my reports, they would double in length but I don’t believe they would be any more revealing or helpful to the reader.

The 2015 follow-up report on the Insolvency Service’s own monitoring states: “IPS had significantly expanded its monitoring reports.  These now contain sufficient detail to enable an informed decision to be made on appropriate action following the issue of the report.”  Hmm… that doesn’t exactly confirm that the reports now contain “all” information or indeed the bonding information on each case.  Does this, along with the Service’s recommendation that ACCA “consider” expanding reports, reflect that they themselves are moderating their original opinion of what should be in reports?

I cheered at ACCA’s response to the recommendation: “ACCA believes that including in the monitoring report areas where there are no concerns risks: expanding the report unnecessarily with no perceived benefit; diluting the overall outcome and reducing focus on the significant weaknesses in the insolvency practitioner’s procedures and the need to make appropriate improvements.”  Good for you, ACCA!

I think it’s a bit of a shame that, despite explaining this opinion, ACCA then states that it has amended its standard report template in an attempt to satisfy the Insolvency Service, although I am sure that many of us appreciate the wisdom in meeting our regulators’ demands even if we don’t agree with them.

“Independent” decision-making

Remembering that the IPS had satisfied the Insolvency Service on this matter by passing all monitoring reports through their Section Head, I sucked my teeth at the Service’s next recommendation to ACCA: “That any monitoring report with unsatisfactory findings be considered independently, for example by the Admissions and Licensing Committee, to assess what regulatory action may be necessary”.

Firstly, no IP is perfect; I have not seen a report with no “unsatisfactory findings”, so this suggests that effectively all monitoring reports would need to go through the Committee.  To be fair, I come from an IPA background where all reports did go through the Committee – and I thought it was valuable that the Committee see the good with the bad – but it’s a big ask for any Committee (especially if reports become far longer seemingly as required by the Service) and I am not surprised that some RPBs have sought to make the process more efficient.  After all, the majority of IPs visited are so obviously way above the threshold where some action is deserved that it makes perfect sense to fast-track these, doesn’t it?

The report stated that “ACCA regrets that it must reject this recommendation as it believes it is an impractical and disproportionate response to the vast majority of visit outcomes”.  ACCA’s response makes clear that each report is considered at least by the monitor and a reviewer, who I think can decide on certain actions such as scheduling a follow-up visit: is this not sufficient for at least the top 50% of IPs?

Admittedly, the devil is in deciding what to do with the reports at the margins: at what stage is an issue serious enough to warrant Committee attention?  Unfortunately for ACCA, the case that led to this recommendation was not a great example.  Although ACCA has done a good job in putting into context each of the breaches identified at this IP visit that ACCA decided fell below the threshold for Committee attention, I have to say that the fees issue alone – even though it was a one-off unusual circumstance (the IP had taken a £5,000 deposit for the costs of liquidating a company, but it was actually placed in administration and the IP drew the deposit for pre-admin costs without complying “fully” with R2.67A) – would have meant, in an IPA context, that it would not only have been considered at length by the Membership & Authorisation Committee, but it would have been an automatic referral also to the Investigation Committee for consideration for disciplinary action.

I am also not persuaded by ACCA’s defence that the IP’s repeat breaches of legislation and/or SIPs resulted in “no actual harm” to the debtor (in one case) or creditors “such that, given the function of the Admissions and Licensing Committee, a referral to it would not have been justified”.  In my experience, it is very rare that breaches of statute or SIPs actually result in harm, but is that the only criterion for deciding whether an issue is sufficiently serious to warrant action?  You could throw out half the rules and SIPs, if all IPs needed to do was avoid harming stakeholders.

I think that ACCA is on stronger ground as regards another issue that the IP had already rectified.  What would be the point of referring this to the Committee?  “Withdrawal or suspension of the licence would be disproportionate and it is not clear what conditions would be appropriate to protect the public, particularly as the breach had already been rectified.”

I think that ACCA’s final comments put it nicely: “To recommend that such cases should routinely be referred to the Admissions and Licensing Committee to decide on any regulatory action and timing of the next visit is a poor use of Committee resources, clearly disproportionate to the findings and, in ACCA’s view, contrary to the guidance contained in the Insolvency Service Regulators’ Code.”

Surely the Insolvency Service should be concentrating on outcomes, shouldn’t they?  After all, that is what Nick Howard said (in the podcast at http://goo.gl/WUst5M) was his objective as regards the Service’s monitoring of all the RPBs: to ensure that they act consistently in reaching the same outcomes.  Admittedly, in this case it does look to me like the IPA (for one) would have put the IP through the ringer, made him sweat a bit more, than ACCA appears to have done, but would it have affected the outcome?  If the IP took on board all of the ACCA monitor’s points and made the necessary changes (some which appear to have taken place prior to the visit in any event), does it matter how his report was processed?

And I would add: how does the IPS’ process – of referring reports to the Section Head – meet the Service’s apparent requirement for independence any better?

Complaints-handling

ACCA has evidently had some difficulties in the past in resourcing their complaints-handling adequately, although they do seem to have cracked it more recently.  I did smile, though, at the Service’s recommendation that “it would be helpful in future for the Insolvency Service to be kept informed of any significant changes in staffing and resources” – ACCA had increased their staffing for complaints from one member to two.  Can you imagine if authorising bodies took such a keen interest in IPs’ staff numbers?!

One of the Service’s other recommendations was that the name of the independent assessor be given to the complainant and the IP “to ensure transparency and openness throughout the process”.  This was the second recommendation that ACCA had rejected: “ACCA does not believe naming assessors will add any real value to the process…  If assessors are named, there is a danger that they may be passed extraneous material, which risks delays in progressing complaints.  There is also the risk of assessors being harassed by members and complainants where their decision is not favourable to them”.

My personal view is that this is another example of the Service trying to meddle with the processes instead of concerning itself with the outcomes.  I can see how they might feel that transparency in this matter might help “improve confidence” in the complaints regime, but is it that material?

 

Single regulator?

What worries me about all this is that the Service appears to be seeking to achieve consistency by ensuring that all authorising bodies’ processes are the same.  This is particularly unhelpful if the Service starts with what they think an authorising body should look like and then exerts pressure on every body to squeeze them into that mould, instead of looking objectively at how the body performs before looking to criticise its processes.

There are a Memorandum of Understanding and Principles for Monitoring.  The Service should be measuring the bodies against these standards.  The Service’s “Oversight regulation and monitoring in the insolvency profession” document (http://goo.gl/jipcWs) confirms that assessing compliance with the MoU and PfM is fundamental.  Thankfully, the MoU and PfM are not so prescriptive that they describe, for example, how much detail should go into monitoring reports.

In this document, the Service also claims to use “an outcomes and principles based approach” in carrying out its oversight role.  I’m afraid that its monitoring reports do not do much to support this claim.  If the Service wants to be effective in its oversight role, personally I think it needs to be thinking and acting smarter.

The clock is ticking for the reserve power to introduce a single regulator.  My problem is that not all that the Service is doing seems to be helping RPBs to achieve their objectives in the best way they think they can.  I ask myself: does the Service really want to support better delegated regulation?


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IP Fees & Regulation Consultation: Have Turkeys Voted for Christmas?

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Faced with an apparent government vision of heavy-handed oversight over the RPBs and some peculiar restrictions on the time cost basis for IP fees, how have the RPBs and R3 responded? Have they resisted the pressure to offer some kind of compromise? Have they offered anything that might “solve the problems”? Here I have attempted to compare and contrast the responses of ACCA, ICAEW, ICAS, IPA and R3 to the key proposals of the recent consultation.

The government consultation page is at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/insolvency-practitioner-regulation-and-fee-structure

The bodies’ responses are located at:

• ACCA: http://www.accaglobal.com/content/accaglobal/zw/en/technical-activities/technical-resources-search/2014/march/cdr1267.html
• ICAEW: http://www.icaew.com/en/technical/insolvency/insolvency-reps
• ICAS: http://icas.org.uk/Technical-Knowledge/Insolvency-Technical/Submissions/
• IPA: in the members’ area>public consultations>other consultations
• R3: https://www.r3.org.uk/media/documents/policy/consultation_subs/R3_response_-_Strengthening_the_regulatory_regime_and_fee_structure_for_IPs.pdf

In particular, I would recommend reading the R3 response in full, as there is not the space here to do it justice and it includes some valuable member survey results.

Regulatory Objectives

The government has proposed regulatory objectives for the statute-books, “framed” as follows:

1. Protecting and promoting the public interest

2. Having a system of regulating persons acting as IPs that:
(i) delivers fair treatment for persons affected by their actions and omissions,
(ii) reflects the regulatory principles under which regulatory activities should be transparent, accountable, proportionate, consistent and targeted only at cases in which action is needed, and any other principle considered to represent best regulatory practice, and
(iii) delivers consistent outcomes

3. Encouraging an independent and competitive IP profession whose members:
(i) deliver quality services transparently and with integrity, and
(ii) consider the interests of all creditors in any particular case

4. Promoting the maximisation of the value of returns to creditors and also promptness in making those returns

5. Ensuring that the fees charged by IPs represent value for money

ACCA seemed alone in considering most of the above to be “uncontentious”, even going so far as to suggest what it felt would be a useful addition to them. However, none of the proposed objectives avoided the other bodies’ critical eyes. Many of the comments revolved around the thought that any such objectives will need to be supported by detailed guidance so that everyone was clear on the standards by which IPs and the RPBs are being measured.

Here are some other fruitier comments:

• Why stop at “having a system of regulating IPs” that delivers fairness etc.? Aren’t some of these objectives appropriate to the insolvency regime itself? (ICAEW, IPA)
• Shouldn’t the regulation system “deliver fair treatment” also to IPs? (ICAEW)
• Fixing IP fees on a prescribed scale (reference to another of the consultation’s proposals) would not “encourage a competitive IP profession”. (ICAEW)
• Statute already sets out how office holders should consider creditors’ interests (ICAEW, R3), although not uniformly in all cases (IPA). Setting it as an objective may raise false hopes of some expecting greater weight to be given to their interests than provided by statute. (ICAEW)
• Promoting the “promptness of returns” could threaten consideration of longer term gains, thus encouraging a culture of “quick kills” rather than thorough investigation and pursuit of claims. (IPA)
• “You should recognise that to perform a ‘value for money’ assessment in a case will require a detailed audit… which will be a very time consuming (and therefore expensive) process.” (ICAEW)
• Setting “value for money” as a regulatory objective simply shifts the responsibility for finding a solution onto the RPBs, rather than helping to overcome the difficulties in ascertaining what actually represents value for money. (IPA)
• The regulatory process cannot alter the facts that creditors will suffer losses, but enshrining objectives 4 and 5 risks over-inflating creditors’ expectations and thus may have a detrimental effect on public confidence. (IPA)

R3 kicked back more robustly on the concept as a whole: “the proposals… prompt us to suggest that now is the time to look at, in a fundamental way, the role of the Insolvency Service, as presently structured, funded, resourced and whether it is the most appropriate body to direct and oversee as important a part of the UK’s financial support service sector as the insolvency profession”.

Oversight Regulator’s Statutory Powers over the RPBs

The government proposes to introduce statutory powers to enable the Insolvency Service/Secretary of State to take a variety of actions against RPBs and, in certain cases, to make their own enquiries of, and apply to court to decide sanctions on, IPs directly. Unsurprisingly, the RPBs – and perhaps a little surprisingly, R3 – expressed concerns over some of the proposals as well as questioning whether the powers were truly necessary (again with the clear exception of ACCA, which had few specific comments on the proposals).

• “The ‘oversight regulator’ should take care to avoid ‘micro-managing’ RPBs and their disciplinary processes. Effectively running a ‘shadow’ regulatory system on top of the existing established processes would be confusing and damaging for the insolvency profession and those it serves.” (R3)
• “The increased powers of sanction by the oversight body seem to be little more than window dressing to address non-existent illegal actions… In our view, the system of regulation operates at its most effective when the oversight regulator and the RPBs work together, as demonstrated through the introduction of the complaints gateway.” (ICAEW)
• “It is worrying that the Secretary of State would wish to acquire the ability to control individual enquiries, which could undermine the fairness of the procedure.” (ICAEW)
• “The fundamental problem… is that the proposed legislation does not envisage there being any stage at which a proper disciplinary hearing will be held to allow the IP to deal with and refute the findings of the Insolvency Service investigation and it is envisaged that the Secretary of State, through the good offices of the Insolvency Service would be investigator, prosecutor and judge (determining both guilt and sanction).” (ICAEW)
• “We wonder whether this process could be susceptible to challenge on the basis of human rights legislation given that there appears to be no provision for a fair trial by an independent tribunal.” (ICAEW)
• “Who picks up the likely significant costs?” If these are to be passed on to the RPBs, then licence fees will increase significantly, with the likely consequences of increased costs on insolvent estates and IPs leaving the market. (ICAEW and R3)
• “There are several proposals… that would see IPs potentially punished twice for the same transgression. It is both inequitable and a position that few other professionals could find themselves in.” (R3) The IPA also stated that such a process “would introduce a degree of double jeopardy and be contrary to principles of natural justice”. Although apparently the Service has clarified, in a meeting with the IPA, that it is not intended to subject an IP to a second disciplinary process, the IPA has questioned how, and in what circumstances, would the Service conduct such enquiries independent of the IP’s licensing body.
• “The power for the Secretary of State to sanction an IP directly calls into question the point of the regulation of the profession being delegated to RPBs in the first place.” (R3)
• As regards the proposed power to issue a direction to an RPB in the context of a disciplinary matter: “it would be wholly inappropriate for the Insolvency Service to mandate that a particular decision be reached.” (ICAS)
• Will the Service be adequately resourced – financially and with skilled staff – to exercise these new powers, particularly in regard to the proposed investigations and prosecutions? (R3 and ICAS)

A Single Regulator?

It seems that there has been a slight convergence of opinions of R3 and the RPBs on this question. Setting aside ACCA, which “endorsed” the proposal, the regulatory and trade bodies now seem united in their objection to the proposed reserve power to enable the Service to designate a single regulator.

However, whereas R3 brought attention to the “regulation gap” that would result as a single regulator got up to speed, the RPBs had other reasons for their objections:

• Whatever could be achieved by the Insolvency Service overseeing a single regulator equally should be achievable with multiple RPBs. Effective oversight is the key. (ICAS and ICAEW)
• “There seems to be a failure to recognise that many IPs are already members of bodies which operate with the best regulatory models for professionals.” (ICAS)
• “Competition between regulators has driven down licensing costs and led to improvements in RPBs’ offerings to their members. There would be no such incentive to innovate, were there to be a single regulatory body.” (IPA)
• The government is also proposing to introduce a formal process to de-recognise an RPB if it fails to perform, but how would that work with a single regulator? We could hardly be left with no regulator! (IPA)
• Providing even a reserve power “could be seen to demonstrate on the part of the Insolvency Service a lack of commitment to the changes proposed for the regulatory regime and a lack of confidence in its part in the RPBs.” (ICAEW)

R3 suggested a third way: a “Single Regulatory Process”, which “would reduce significantly the inconsistencies that currently exist in the insolvency profession’s regulation” and “would also be a chance to take a fresh look at the profession’s regulatory processes and standards”.

Restriction of Use of Time Cost Basis

I wonder if the Service had any inkling of the floodgate they were prising open with the suggestion that the option of seeking fees on a time cost basis be limited to certain cases. Even ACCA is opposed to this one!

The core objections will not come as a surprise:

• If the primary issue is lack of creditor engagement, then the solution should lie in improving creditor engagement, starting with the Crown creditors. (ACCA, ICAS, ICAEW)
• “Some IPs may feel minded for their own commercial protection to factor in more work than might in the event be necessary, in which case fees could end up being over-estimated.” (ACCA; similar comments made by R3)
• In 2013, only 2% of all complaints related to fees, so perhaps creditors’ concern is not so acute as perceived by the government, and any action taken to change the existing regime must be proportionate. (ACCA, R3, ICAEW, ICAS)
• Plenty of criticisms of the OFT study: out of date, limited scope (which is now being extrapolated far beyond its remit), confusion between fees and costs, assumption that engaged creditors are the only constraint on fees, etc… (primarily R3 and ICAEW)
• IPs will avoid small and risky cases, as a fixed/percentage fee would not be economical. (R3, ACCA) [Although I have heard this many times, personally I don’t get it (unless people have in mind a prescribed rate): for a case with assets of £10,000 (net of non-IP costs), how does an IP’s recovery differ, if he is paid on a time cost basis, a fixed fee of £10,000, or a fee of 100% of the first £10,000 (net) realised?]
• This would burden the public purse, as uneconomic cases will remain with the OR. Some IPs also would leave the market, resulting in reduced competition and fewer options for debtors seeking help, which would seem contrary to the public interest. (R3, ICAEW)
• Fixed fees do not incentivise IPs to pursue tricky assets or to carry out non-profitable tasks. What does an IP do when he reaches the limit but still has work to do; is he expected to work for no pay? (ACCA, R3, ICAS, ICAEW, IPA)
• As recommended by the Cork Report, percentage-based fees were largely dropped in the 1980s, as they were viewed as unfair and inequitable to creditors. (ACCA, R3) “There is nothing inherently fair in a basis of charging where the results depend upon the amount and quality of realisable assets, rather than the work required.” (ICAEW) Arguably, time costs are the fairest fees mechanism (ICAEW), whereas fixed/percentage fees will invariably result in an element of cross-subsidisation of cases. (IPA)
• There is no evidence – or reason – to support the assumption that adopting fixed/percentage fees will reduce fee levels (IPA) or creditors’ returns (ICAEW).

But here are some of the more impassioned and novel comments:

• This specific proposal has no grounding in the Kempson review nor has there been any evidence-based research. “The Insolvency Service has disclosed the rationale behind this decision is solely ‘because two methods of remuneration are simpler than three’.” (R3)
• “R3 is not aware of anywhere else in the world where fee restrictions as outlined in the consultation are in operation. In effect, the Insolvency Service proposes to introduce an untested system of IP remuneration in the UK.” (R3)
• Secured creditors have the power to negotiate discounts from IPs, but why must that mean that unsecured creditors are ‘over-charged’? If a large customer (such as the government via its own procurement policy) sought to obtain discounts, that does not mean that other buyers of the goods and services are automatically being ‘over-charged’. (R3)
• Is a 9% differential in costs (the OFT study’s conclusion) really concerning? “The differential, for instance, between prices charged for consumer goods to wholesale or retail customers could be expected to be much higher (and still not exploitative of consumers).” (ICAEW)
• Restricting fees could result in outsourcing of parts of the job to unregulated entities, shifting the cost rather than reducing it and resulting in less transparency and control. (R3)
• “It is simplistic to think that changes introduced in the personal insolvency market can be imported into the corporate sector; this view demonstrates a complete lack of understanding of corporate insolvency, This market cannot be ‘commoditised’ in the same way.” (R3)
• If creditors have difficulty assessing the reasonableness of fees based on time costs, they will have the same, if not greater, difficulty judging fixed/percentage fees, something acknowledged by Professor Kempson. (R3)
• There is no reason to believe that restricting the use of the time cost basis in this manner will impact on creditor engagement or complaints about fees. (R3)
• RICS abolished fee scales for valuations after the Monopolies and Mergers Commission concluded that “they restricted competition and worked against consumers and were against the public interest”. (ICAEW)
• It is difficult to reconcile the government’s apparent determination to improve public confidence in the insolvency regime with the World Bank’s report that shows the UK currently as one of the most effective jurisdictions for resolving insolvency. (ICAEW)
• “If the aim of the Insolvency Service is to reduce IPs’ fees in aggregate to a break-even level, it seems unlikely that a high quality profession will be sustained.” (ICAEW)
• The Impact Assessment identifies the risk that the OR might be left with more small-value cases, but the Assessment’s suggestion “that the concerns will be ‘overcome’ through regulatory objectives of RPBs and monitoring is fanciful. The consequences would result from a fee regime imposed upon the profession by the government and RPBs would not be in a position to do anything about it.” (ICAEW)
• Professor Kempson recommended greater use of mixed bases for fees, but the government is proposing to abolish this. (IPA) [Mixed bases were only introduced in 2010!]
• The government wishes RPBs to engage more actively in monitoring and assessment of fees, but this will be more difficult in non-time cost cases. (IPA)
• The 2010 reforms and revised SIP9 are still fresh, but “the Insolvency Service appears already to have concluded that those reforms failed.” (ICAEW)
• Proposals to provide different fee bases for different case types, recovery prospects, and UK jurisdictions will do nothing to clarify an already-confusing picture for creditors. (ICAEW)

The bodies’ suggestions of alternative approaches are a mixed bag (some of which, personally, I find a bit scary! But hey, a bit of brain-storming is no bad thing.):

• Greater engagement by Crown creditors (pretty-much everyone’s idea).
• Reduce the constraints on creditors’ committees, e.g. smaller quorum. (ICAS)
• Encourage committee members, e.g. small payments for attending meetings. (ICAEW)
• Introduce a Scottish-style Reporter mechanism across the UK (the consultation stated that the Scottish system’s checks and balances appeared to work reasonably well). (ICAS)
• Require IPs “to justify to creditors and regulators their use of the hourly rate, by reference to prescribed criteria”. (ACCA)
• “More targeted support… to creditors to enable them to assess the reasonableness of the amounts being claimed.” (ACCA)
• “Improved management of creditor expectations, through creditor guides, fee estimates and estimated outcome statements.” (IPA)
• “Enhanced capital requirements and/or direct financial contribution by directors to the basic costs of insolvency processes.” (IPA) [Interesting idea, but isn’t there a risk of conflict with this..?]
• Fixing a minimum fee for those statutory elements of an insolvency administration that will generally not be of direct financial benefit to creditors.” (IPA, similar suggestion by R3)
• “Data collection and benchmarking of fee data.” (IPA) [And..?]
• “Guidance and/or compulsion of IPs to make greater use of mixed fee bases for different elements of the work involved within an insolvency administration. The onus could be put on the IP to justify why the basis sought is appropriate to the nature of assets, the complexity of the task and the value that it is estimated will result.” (IPA) [But does this follow, given some of the arguments against fixed/percentage fees..?]
• Better explanation by IPs up-front of the likelihood (or not) of dividends and of the work that will need to be carried out that will not generate direct financial benefits. (IPA)
• Adjusting the requisite voting majorities so that greater creditor participation is required. (IPA) [Why penalise IPs for creditors’ inactivity?]
• Encouraging cheaper ways of conducting “meetings”, e.g. by telephone, e-meetings, or resolutions by correspondence. (ICAEW)
• Drop the Red Tape Challenge proposal to remove the requirement to hold creditors’ meetings. (R3)
• More/better guides for creditors, similar to those that the Insolvency Service already provides for debtors facing bankruptcy. (ICAEW, R3)
• More transparency/information regarding the costs to insolvent estates by the Insolvency Service, as creditors/debtors often confuse these with IPs’ fees. (R3)
• Trade bodies should help members to understand insolvency – and how to avoid it or becoming a creditor in an insolvency – better. (ICAEW)
• All relevant Insolvency Service officials should work in an IP firm for a minimum of two weeks per year as ‘on the job/CPD training’ to plug the apparent knowledge gap, given the lack of understanding of the insolvency profession evidenced by the consultation proposals. (R3) [Ooh!]
• Greater use of cost-saving measures of 2010 Rules and more time to allow them to have effect. (R3)
• “IPs should also be required to report work with more transparency, e.g. break down time-use clearly into constituent parts such as ‘communicating with x number of creditors to establish a meeting’.” (R3) [Ooer! Can we try to keep it relatively simple and proportionate..?]
• “Introducing elements of a Code of Practice for IPs (based on the model in Australia) plus changes to SIP9 could be introduced to ensure that IPs’ records of time spent (and corresponding fees on a case) are transparent and accountable.” (R3) [In what ways is the current SIP9 deficient in this area..? R3 points to the Australian part of the MF Global case report as a good example; this report provides a fee estimate of $1 million for the first month – is R3 sure this is an appropriate model for typical (non-secured creditor) cases?] R3 suggests that in this way IPs would explain the work done “in more detail” and “reporting would be clearer”.

The most widely-made suggestion as regards fee-setting is the mandatory use of fee estimates (ACCA, IPA, ICAEW, R3), with some bodies suggesting express creditor approval for exceeding an estimate could be required (IPA, R3; ACCA: “perhaps”). I’m attracted to this idea as well, but, although I agree with the idea of seeking creditors’ approval for fees in excess of an estimate, I would hope that this could be done without necessarily positive creditor response; if creditors do not respond to an invitation to vote, then is it fair to penalise the IP? It could also impact on creditors’ returns, as silence may force the IP to take further measures, perhaps by court application, to achieve approval. It might also be more likely to encourage a poor habit of over-estimating fees in the first instance, so that IPs can avoid the hassle of seeking approval to more fees later. There are many issues with this suggestion – some will complain that it is well-nigh impossible to estimate fees with any degree of confidence at an early stage – but it has to be the lesser of several suggested evils, hasn’t it? In addition, isn’t it a standard and professional way of approaching fees? After all, don’t we usually seek fees estimates – with subsequent approval for uplifts – from many suppliers, from solicitors to garage mechanics?

Regulatory Intervention in Matters of Remuneration

The consultation also sought views on proposals to have the RPBs take a greater role in assessing and deciding on fees issues, via both enhanced monitoring and dealing with complaints about the quantum of fees. Most RPBs pointed out that IP fees are already considered to a significant extent; the ICAEW described it this way: “reviewers already look in detail at the insolvency practitioner’s time records. They will question the time recorded against specific tasks, where it doesn’t appear commensurate with the work evidenced on the case files; where it appears to have been carried out by a more experienced member of staff than we would consider appropriate; or where it appears excessive.”

As regards the suggestion that RPBs should do more than look at clear regulatory breaches:

• “To suggest that RPB bodies should step into the breach – even if one exists in relation to IP remuneration – will not address the issue without a sincere attempt by the UK Government to review the legislation. Regulators should not be asked to circumvent or overrule the law and to do so will inevitably expose the regulators to legal challenge.” (ICAS; ICAEW also highlighted the risks of Court challenge of RPBs’ judgments)
• “We are unclear on what basis an RPB could interject when the fee basis has been approved by a statutory process. This would be a usurpation of Court’s powers.” (IPA)
• “If 90% of creditors have approved as IPs fees, it does not appear reasonable to allow a minority financial interest to delay the administration of an estate.” (IPA)

Whilst the IPA is “opposed to routine regulatory involvement in fee assessment”, it seems more open to the idea that more could be done practically: it suggested that, if the idea of fee estimates were taken up, it could engage in “routine monitoring of practitioner performance” against these estimates. It also stated: “we can see no reason why, in a case of apparent excessive charging, the RPB could not direct the practitioner to repay such fees as exceed the original estimate provided or else direct the IP to have their fees assessed by a Court”, although the IPA does seem to be alone in this view.

It seems clear from the responses that there is much confusion amongst the bodies as to exactly what the government is proposing; simply dropping in a “value for money” regulatory objective and telling RPBs to get on with it will not work. The IPA remarked: “The regulatory challenges presented flow from the entirely subjective nature of establishing what value for money is and in whose opinion such value should be ascertained. The government has been singularly unable to define these concepts and appears now to expect the RPBs to be able to do so on their behalf… Will a full review of time spent and how this compares to the fixed or percentage fees charged be required? Will on-site visits to review practitioners’ files be expected?” The ICAEW also stated that, if the idea is for “RPBs to effectively conclude on each file reviewed that the IP’s costs represent value for money, we would expect there to be a significant impact on our monitoring costs; potentially doubling them.” However, the ICAEW seems to have been party to a meeting with the Consultation Policy Lead that has led them to conclude that all that is envisaged of RPBs as regards “enhanced monitoring” is pretty-much what they are already doing. One would hope that the Service could do better at communicating their desires to the bodies that they directly oversee!

In summary, I don’t think the turkeys have voted for Christmas. I think they have resisted well the pressure to seek a compromise, but have endeavoured to keep their eye focussed on what truly appears to be the issue – creditor engagement – and what practically might be done to improve the situation.


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Proposals to Reform EC Insolvency Regulation: Better to be inside the tent?

If you, like me, were dissuaded from exploring the EC’s proposal on revising the European Regulation on Insolvency Proceedings, issued on 12 December 2012, by reason of its sheer length, you might find the Insolvency Service’s recent Call for Evidence useful in summarising its potential reach into the UK.

The Insolvency Service opened its Call for Evidence on 7 February 2013, with a closing date of 25 February. Whilst this may seem a tiny window in which to contemplate such a tome of proposals, I am certain that those for whom this holds most interest already will have spent quite some time over the last two months absorbing the proposals.

The fundamental question being asked by the Service is: should the Government opt in or out of the Regulation? Even with my zero personal experience and limited understanding of the work of cross-border insolvencies, it seems to me a no-brainer (well, the way the Service has argued it anyway). The Call for Evidence also asks questions on elements of the proposals likely to impact most on UK insolvency with a view to developing a negotiating mandate for the UK.

The Insolvency Service’s Call for Evidence can be found at: http://www.bis.gov.uk/insolvency/Consultations/EU-CallForEvidence and the EC’s full proposals at: http://ec.europa.eu/justice/newsroom/civil/news/121212_en.htm. I’ve set out below the proposals as they appear in the Service’s consultation.

In or Out?

By opting in, the UK can engage in negotiations in order to finalise the proposals, but it will not be able to opt out subsequently and so the UK will be bound by the final Regulation, whatever its form.

If the UK does not opt in, it can only observe the process; it may decide to opt in later, but it will need the Member States’ consent. If the UK does not opt in to the final Regulation at all, it may mean that the UK will remain bound by the existing Regulation. This could cause much confusion when dealing with an insolvency that crosses the border of an opted-in Member State and, as the Impact Assessment puts it, “the UK is generally considered to be a good environment for cross-border insolvency resolution, and this scenario would undermine that position” (paragraph 30).

An alternative scenario if the UK does not opt in is that the European Council may decide that the existing Regulation in its current form could no longer apply to the UK. The Service describes the consequences as: disenfranchisement of UK stakeholders from EU cross-border insolvencies; UK insolvencies failing to have EU-wide recognition; and, whilst the Model Law might help, it might involve multiple court proceedings in the different relevant jurisdictions and thus increased costs and time to get results.

From scanning commentaries on the EC proposals, it appears to me that not opting in is very unlikely. The only seriously negative vibe I’ve picked up – although even this is by no means universal – is a desire to keep Schemes of Arrangement out of the Regulation. As the EC proposes to retain the power of each Member State to decide whether a national insolvency procedure should be included, it seems to me that this is a weak reason for not opting in. And in any event, I would have thought there would be value in having Schemes of Arrangement acquire recognition across the EU. (UPDATE 16/10/2013: okay, I can see now the value of keeping Schemes out of the Regulation – see, for example, the following article by Dentons extolling the virtues of Schemes for essentially foreign companies: http://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=3fd5d9b8-3356-4dd4-86bf-aea8980a9311&utm_source=Lexology+Daily+Newsfeed&utm_medium=HTML+email+-+Body+-+General+section&utm_campaign=Lexology+subscriber+daily+feed&utm_content=Lexology+Daily+Newsfeed+2013-10-15&utm_term=)

Scope of the Insolvency Regulation

As alluded to above, the EC proposes to extend the scope of the Regulation wider than just “liquidation”, as presently (albeit that the Annex to the 2000 Regulation already includes Administration, VAs, Bankruptcy and Sequestration). It proposes to include proceedings “in which the assets and affairs of the debtor are subject to the control or supervision by a court. Such supervision would include proceedings where the court has no real involvement unless a creditor makes an application to review a decision” (paragraph 21) and “proceedings which include the adjustment of debt and the debtor remains in control of any assets” (paragraph 22). This is where the idea that Schemes of Arrangement will be wrapped up in the Regulation comes from.

Also as mentioned above, the Member State can decide whether to notify a particular national insolvency procedure to be included, but it is proposed there will be a new mechanism whereby the EC then will scrutinise the procedure to ensure that it fits the defined scope of the Regulation.

Jurisdiction for opening insolvency proceedings

The concept of COMI is proposed to be retained, consistent with the body of case law that has developed. The proposals seek to extend the concept to individuals.

The EC proposes to introduce a duty on the court or IP that opens the insolvency proceedings to examine the COMI of the debtor and specify the ground on which their jurisdiction is decided. Creditors from other Member States shall have the right to challenge the decision.

Secondary proceedings

It is proposed that the court receiving an application to open secondary proceedings must inform the office-holder of the main proceedings and allow him/her to be heard before the court makes its decision. The main proceedings’ office-holder will be entitled to ask for the application for secondary proceedings to be stayed, if they are not necessary to protect the interests of local creditors.

The proposal removes the restriction that secondary proceedings must be winding-up proceedings; it is proposed that they can be any proceedings available under the law of that Member State, including restructuring.

In addition, it is proposed that the courts in the main and secondary proceedings be obliged to communicate and cooperate with each other and that a similar obligation will be on the office-holder to communicate and cooperate with the court in the other Member State involved in the proceedings.

Publicity of proceedings and lodging of claims

“Each Member State will be required to maintain a public register(s) of insolvency decisions relating to companies and self-employed individuals, which must be internet based and free of charge. This requirement does not extend to insolvency proceedings concerning non-trading individuals or consumers” (paragraph 32). The register will contain basic information on the insolvency (albeit more than is currently on Companies House; for example, the information must include the court and reference number) plus a date for lodging claims. “Each register will be searchable via the European e-justice portal, with an interconnected search facility” (paragraph 33).

The EC proposes the provision of two standard forms for foreign creditors – a notice of insolvency and claim form – which will be made available (by whom? I think by the European e-justice portal) in all official EU languages. Foreign creditors must be given at least 45 days to lodge a claim, irrespective of any national laws specifying shorter timescales.

Groups of companies

The EC proposes to retain the Regulation’s entity-by-entity approach to the insolvencies of group companies, but seeks to improve coordination of efforts. Thus courts and office-holders involved in different proceedings on group companies will be obliged to communicate and cooperate.

It is proposed that the office-holder of an insolvent group company will be entitled to be heard in any opening proceedings on any other group company and will have the right to request a stay. An office-holder will also be able to participate in any insolvency proceedings on other group companies, for example in creditors’ meetings. As the EC puts it, “these procedural tools enable the liquidator [i.e. office-holder] which has the biggest interest in the successful restructuring of all companies concerned to officially submit his reorganisation plan in the proceedings concerning a group member, even if the liquidator in these proceedings is unwilling to cooperate or is opposed to the plan” (page 9 of the EC proposal).

The proposals are not intended to interfere with a strategy of pursuing a single set of insolvency proceedings over a highly integrated group of companies when it is determined that their COMI is in one jurisdiction.

Of course, this is all subject to negotiation and time… probably lots of time…

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UPDATE: On 15 April 2013, it was announced that the Government has decided to opt in to the proposal. This followed a unanimous response in favour of opting in by those who responded to the consultation. The written ministerial statement and the consultation responses can be accessed from: http://www.bis.gov.uk/insolvency/news/news-stories/2013/Apr/EUCallForEvidence