Westminster MPs to debate closure of Official Receiver’s Hull office
Westminster MPs will discuss the proposed closure of the Official Receiver’s office in Hull on Tuesday 13 May, thanks to a local MP
The move was welcomed by Prospect members campaigning against the closure of the Hull Official Receiver’s office.
Hull North MP Diana Johnson initiated the debate, which is scheduled for 7pm but may start earlier.
The Insolvency Service announced the closure in March after a three-week review, to the astonishment of the 45 staff based there.
Yvette Hull, secretary of Prospect’s Insolvency Service branch, said: “We welcome Diana Johnson’s initiative as it gives Parliament the opportunity to debate the closure.
“The Hull office has led the fight against German nationals attempting to avoid bankruptcy restrictions in their own country by nipping across the North Sea to become bankrupt in the UK.
“The Official Receiver in Hull disqualified 27 directors last year benefiting the economy by over £2m.
“The closure will result in the loss of over 600 years of insolvency experience, leading to a worse service for creditors, bankrupts and the wider economy in the Humber region.”
The Insolvency Service provides the means for dealing with financial failure in the economy and the misconduct of individuals who may be associated with it. The organisation has lost 1,000 staff in England and Wales since 2009-10.
The agency administers and investigates:
- the affairs of bankrupts
- individuals subject to debt relief orders
- companies and partnerships wound up by the court
- disqualification of directors
- authorisation and regulation of the insolvency profession.
It also assesses and pays statutory entitlements to redundancy payments.
Prospect represents 440 Insolvency Service staff employed in 35 locations. Their principal role(s) of insolvency examiner covers both company investigations and debtor and creditor petitions.