2018-01-15reuters.com

Carillion collapsed on Monday when its banks pulled the plug, triggering Britain's biggest corporate failure in a decade and forcing the government to step in to guarantee public services from school meals to roadworks.

The 200-year-old business went into compulsory liquidation at 0600 GMT after costly contract delays and a slump in new business left it swamped by debt and pensions liabilities of at least 2.2 billion pounds ($3 billion).

Its demise threatens to hurt smaller suppliers, merchants, rivals and Britain's biggest banks. The British government was left to ensure there was no disruption to public services... The government stopped short, however, of bailing out the company as it did with major banks during the 2007-09 financial crisis.

...

Employing 43,000 people around the world, including 20,000 in Britain, Carillion has been fighting for survival since July, when it revealed it was losing cash on projects and had written down the value of its contract book by 845 million pounds.

With banks refusing in recent days to accept the latest restructuring plan, May's senior ministers met around the clock, under pressure from the Labour Party and unions not to use taxpayer money to prop up the failing company.

Ministers, top bankers and company bosses scrambled to find a way to save the company in last-ditch talks over the weekend.

...

Spun out of Tarmac nearly 20 years ago and including construction names such as Wimpey and Alfred McAlpine, Carillion operates in Britain and Ireland, Canada, the Middle East and North Africa.



Comments: Be the first to add a comment

add a comment | go to forum thread