“As the clothing chain BHS goes bust with the loss of nearly 11,000 jobs, it’s worth recalling the hand of Sir Philip Green, the man who will share a part of the blame for its bankruptcy.
Green bought BHS in 2000 for a sum of £200 million and controlled it for 15 years, though it was registered under the name of his wife Tina, who lived in Monaco.
When he bought BHS, its pension scheme was in surplus. By the time he sold it – it was in deficit. It is estimated that his family received more than £400m in dividends from the company.
In 2004 alone, Green’s family got a £40m dividend from BHS.
A year later, he collected a £1.2 billion dividend from Arcadia – the group that owned BHS – making it the biggest paycheque in British corporate history. It was more than four times Arcadia’s profits, and Green claimed the company was in great health and BHS had plenty of opportunities to grow.
To add insult to injury, the £1.2 billion payout wasn’t taxed, since it went to his wife in Monaco. The couple were accused of tax avoidance.
All this came after Sir Philip Green was appointed by David Cameron to ‘lead a review of government waste‘, in 2010.
And just a few weeks ago – as BHS teetered on the edge of bankruptcy and a pensions scandal was about to erupt – Sir Philip Green bought himself a third luxury yacht.
By that point it was no longer his concern – he had washed his hands off BHS a year earlier for just £1.
He said at the time:
“The business is handed over in a sound financial position with significant cash balances and banking facilities in place.”
If BHS goes bankrupt, it likely won’t meet pension commitments to 20,000 people. Clearly, Green doesn’t care now.
What advice on spending money did the government get from this man?”
East Devon Watch 