Sir Philip Green, the billionaire owner of Topshop, will answer questions on the demise of BHS in a much-awaited testimony to MPs.
After weeks of speculation, the retail tycoon is scheduled to give evidence to a joint inquiry by MPs on the works and pensions committee and the business, innovation and skills committee at 9.15am on Wednesday. Other key questions will focus on the money the Green family extracted from BHS and why the department store’s pension scheme was left in such a dire position.
Green is expected to be questioned about why he sold the retail group in 2015 for £1 to a little-known group of investors led by serial bankrupt Dominic Chappell, who saw the business collapse into administration.
He is thought likely to contest Chappell’s account of how the deal came about, given to the inquiry last week. However, Green is expected to put forward a proposal under which he would inject cash to keep BHS’s scheme out of the industry-backed Pension Protection Fund, which imposes cuts of at least 10% for those below retirement age.
However, he is unlikely to promise the £600m that the work and pensions committee chair, Frank Field, has demanded to cover the £571m calculation of the deficit under the toughest measure.
The former BHS owner was so angered by Field’s demands that he threatened not to appear before MPs unless the Labour firebrand stepped down. The scheme requires at least £275m to keep it out of the pensions lifeboat under which members who have not already retired will receive only 90% of their future pensions.
However, Green released a statement on Tuesday saying he would turn up. “This will be the first and only opportunity I have had to tell my side of the very sad BHS story, and I will do my best to answer all the questions put to me in an honest and open way.”
Green’s appearance comes after MPs drew up a list of potential action they would take if he did not turn up, including removing his knighthood.
Meanwhile, the administrators for BHS have given those interested in buying parcels of the retailer’s stores a deadline of Wednesday night to put forward bids.
The bidders are thought to include Sports Direct’s Mike Ashley, Primark and B&M, with some parties interested in as many as 60 stores and others only a handful. At least one bidder is understood to be looking at BHS’s international business.
