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3 July 2006 : Column 850W—continued

	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004
Inner London	20,045	17,870	17,680	19,635	19,235
City of London	1,460	1,085	1,045	1,090	1,120
Camden	2,215	1,870	1,900	2,035	1,995
Hackney	1,155	1,015	1,030	1,075	975
Hammersmith and Fulham	1,015	995	940	965	1,065
Haringey	970	880	830	895	905
Islington	1,365	1,190	1,230	1,240	1,310
Kensington and Chelsea	1,225	940	1,095	1,160	1,175
Lambeth	845	1,000	875	900	1,025
Lewisham	605	605	595	600	625
Newham	575	530	545	650	635
Southwark	1,100	955	975	1,085	1,080
Tower Hamlets	1,095	935	970	1,110	1,045
Wandsworth	1,195	1,115	1,115	1,235	1,350
Westminster	5,225	4,765	4,535	5,590	4,930
Outer London	16,360	15,390	15,365	16,270	16,225
Barking and Dagenham	370	320	320	360	355
Barnet	2,045	1,760	1,700	1,635	1,610
Bexley	590	620	540	570	535
Brent	1,175	1,090	1,030	1,160	1,150
Bromley	955	965	950	985	995
Croydon	960	945	985	1,070	945
Ealing	1,195	1,150	1,185	1,315	1,295
Enfield	900	820	845	900	905
Greenwich	530	490	485	515	560
Harrow	945	915	920	1,045	1,205
Havering	650	640	620	620	600
Hillingdon	865	760	845	850	870
Hounslow	825	815	800	855	845
Kingston upon Thames	625	600	595	575	630
Merton	770	690	640	720	700
Redbridge	860	795	770	850	815
Richmond upon Thames	955	890	995	1,010	985
Sutton	505	505	490	540	535
Waltham Forest	650	630	650	685	695

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to the answer of 19 June 2006, Official Report, column 1576W, on the Business Review, how he plans to ensure that the information on companies' relationships with suppliers will be comparable (a) between companies and (b) over time. [80697]

Margaret Hodge: As clause 399 (4) of the Company Law Reform Bill sets out, the Business Review is required to be a balanced and comprehensive analysis of the company's business consistent with the size and complexity of the business. There is no explicit requirement for companies to report on their relationships with suppliers. Where reporting on relationships with suppliers is necessary for an understanding of the development, performance or position of the company's business, it will be for the directors to consider what type of information to include in their review. The purpose of the Business Review is to inform members of the company and help them assess how the directors have performed their duty under clause 158 (duty to promote the success of the company). The statutory provisions therefore set out the framework of the Business Review, but it is for directors of each company to determine its content according to the circumstances of the particular
3 July 2006 : Column 851W
company. These are matters for the directors' judgment and it is for the company's shareholders to hold the directors to account.

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to the answer of 19 June 2006, Official Report, column 1576W, on the Business Review, what (a) financial and (b) non-financial key performance indicators companies will be required to use when reporting on their relationships with suppliers in the Business Review; what estimate he has made of how many companies will be required to report on their relationships with overseas suppliers under the provisions of clause 399 of the Company Law Reform Bill; what types of information companies will be required to include in their reports on relationships with overseas suppliers within the Business Review; what the provisions are of the Company Law Reform Bill which will oblige companies to include information on relationships with suppliers; whether he plans to introduce statutory guidance on what types of information on supplier relationships must be included in the Business Review; and if he will make a statement. [80865]

Margaret Hodge: Companies must include financial and non-financial key performance indicators in their Business Review to the extent necessary for an understanding of the development, performance or position of the company's business. The review is required to be a balanced and comprehensive analysis of the company's business consistent with the size and complexity of the business, but there is no explicit requirement for companies to report on their relationships with suppliers. Where reporting on relationships with suppliers—whether domestic or overseas—is necessary for an understanding of the development, performance or position of the company's business, it will be for the directors to consider what type of information to include in their review. This is a matter for the directors' judgment and it is for the company's shareholders to hold the directors to account. We will be debating the Business Review provisions in Committee.

Mr. Martlew: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many firms in the Carlisle district council area have (a) started and (b) ceased trading in each year since 1995. [80328]

Margaret Hodge: Value-added tax (VAT) registrations and deregistrations are the best official guide to the pattern of business starts and closures. DTI figures based solely on VAT registrations and deregistrations for Carlisle local authority are shown in the table for 1995 to 2004 inclusive. Data for 2005 will be available in autumn 2006. For comparison, the VAT-registered business stock in Carlisle is also shown.

3 July 2006 : Column 852W

	Registrations	De-registrations	Registered business stock at end of year
1995	205	250	3,075
1996	180	220	3,030
1997	210	195	3,045
1998	210	195	3,060
1999	215	215	3,060
2000	220	210	3,060
2001	245	195	3,115
2002	260	200	3,175
2003	280	215	3,240
2004	285	210	3,315
Source: Business Start-ups and Closures: VAT Registrations and De-registrations 1994-2004, Small Business Service, available from the Library of the House and also at http://www.sbs.gov.uk/vats. Owing to rounding, the stock at the end of the previous year, plus registrations during the year, minus deregistrations during the year, may not exactly match the stock at the end of the year

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