People Make Glasgow sign in front of the Technology and Innovation Centre.

The disqualification order was granted at Perth Sheriff Court following an investigation by the Insolvency Service. The disqualification commenced on 20 December 2017 and is effective until 20 December 2024.

Mr McFarlane’s ban relates to his selling off company assets for his own benefit whilst creditors were left unpaid. Gilmour McFarlane (29) was the sole director of Garden Haulage Limited. From 2009 the company hired out plant and machinery in addition to labour and carried out contractual work, primarily for farms. The company went into liquidation on 28 August 2015 with an estimated deficiency to its creditors of £38,670.

The investigation by the Insolvency Service found that at a time when the company was insolvent, Gilmour McFarlane caused it to dispose of plant and machinery to a third party for a sum of £55,000 plus VAT while on the same day Gilmour McFarlane settled a personally guaranteed loan to that party. This transaction was to the detriment of HMRC and other creditors of the company.

The investigation also found that for the period from at least 1 September 2014 to 28 August 2015,Gilmour McFarlane failed to preserve or deliver up adequate accounting records for Garden Haulage Limited as a consequence of which it has not been possible to establish the true financial position of the company, how other assets were dealt with and whether all sums due to the company were collected in.

Robert Clarke, Group Leader of Insolvent Investigations North at the Insolvency Service said:

The period of this disqualification reflects the fact that when a company fails to keep adequate financial records it is simply not possible to determine whether there has been other, more serious, impropriety in relation to the management of its affairs.

Furthermore, directors who put their own personal financial interests above those of customers and creditors damage confidence in doing business and are corrosive to the health of the local economy.

Gilmour McFarlane’s date of birth is April 1988.

Gilmour McFarlane was appointed as director of Garden Haulage Limited (company number SC364384) on 21 August 2009 and remained a director throughout the company’s trading. Garden Haulage Limited had a registered office of 66 Tay Street, Perth, PH2 8RP.

A disqualification order has the effect that without specific permission of a court, a person with a disqualification cannot:

• act as a director of a company

• take part, directly or indirectly, in the promotion, formation or management of a company or limited liability partnership

• be a receiver of a company’s property

Disqualification undertakings are the administrative equivalent of a disqualification order but do not involve court proceedings.

Persons subject to a disqualification order are bound by a range of other restrictions.

The Insolvency Service, an executive agency sponsored by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), administers the insolvency regime, and aims to deliver and promote a range of investigation and enforcement activities both civil and criminal in nature, to support fair and open markets. We do this by effectively enforcing the statutory company and insolvency regimes, maintaining public confidence in those regimes and reducing the harm caused to victims of fraudulent activity and to the business community, including dealing with the disqualification of directors in corporate failures.

BEIS’ mission is to build a dynamic and competitive UK economy that works for all, in particular by creating the conditions for business success and promoting an open global economy. The Criminal Investigations and Prosecutions team contributes to this aim by taking action to deter fraud and to regulate the market. They investigate and prosecute a range of offences, primarily relating to personal or company insolvencies.

The agency also authorises and regulates the insolvency profession, assesses and pays statutory entitlement to redundancy payments when an employer cannot or will not pay employees, provides banking and investment services for bankruptcy and liquidation estate funds and advises ministers and other government departments on insolvency law and practice.

Further information about the work of the Insolvency Service, and how to complain about financial misconduct, is available.

Media enquiries for this press release – 020 7674 6910 or 020 7596 6187

You can also follow the Insolvency Service on:

The government has today (12 February 2018) launched a consultation asking for views on amending the Digital Economy Act to bring in data-sharing measures that could help bring down the bills of those most at risk of fuel poverty.

The consultation will explore the use of powers which would allow the sharing of information between public authorities and energy suppliers so that vulnerable consumers receiving certain benefits would automatically be protected by the safeguard tariff.

The energy regulator, Ofgem, introduced a safeguard tariff cap in April 2017 for 4 million consumers on prepayment meters. This month, it was extended to a further one million who receive the Warm Home Discount. Ofgem consulted on further eligibility for the safeguard tariff cap earlier this year and the powers proposed in this consultation will make identifying and protecting these vulnerable consumers easier while still protecting their data.

The move comes as the government prepares to introduce a Tariff Cap Bill which will put an end to rip-off standard variable tariffs.

Business and Energy Secretary Greg Clark said:

The effects of energy price rises are often felt most by those on the lowest incomes, as they are usually on the highest standard variable tariffs. These people are at risk of being plunged further into fuel poverty if they are left at the mercy of a broken energy market. Enabling energy suppliers to establish who should be on Ofgem’s safeguard tariff cap will help these vulnerable consumers.

The government is committed to tackling fuel poverty. We want to make it easier for those vulnerable consumers to bring their energy bills down. And it doesn’t stop there. We are working with Ofgem and other partners to ensure that switching is made easier and we’ll be introducing an energy price cap bill soon so that we can have an energy market that works for everyone.

The proposed amendments to the Digital Economy Act will allow suppliers to work with government to carefully identify those whose energy bills are high and potentially putting them in financial difficulty. These people can then be placed under Ofgem’s safeguard tariff cap, protecting them from high bills and unfair price rises.

We will shortly be introducing our Tariff Cap Bill which will put an end to rip-off standard tariffs. Our Bill, published in the autumn, has been undergoing pre-legislative scrutiny in order to build cross-party consensus. We expect a report from the BEIS Select Committee shortly so that we can begin the process of getting the Bill through the House in order to protect millions of consumers as soon as possible.

National Energy Action (NEA) Chief Executive Adam Scorer said:

Schemes to take people out of fuel poverty have been hamstrung by an inability to target support on those who need it most. Data matching is a necessary part of the answer and NEA welcomes this consultation as an important step to establishing a safe and effective way of bringing help with energy costs to those least able to afford a warm home.

Energy regulator Ofgem announced today its intention to trial its first ‘hassle free’ switching service as part of a package of reforms aimed at making it easier for people to switch as well as protecting those who don’t switch from being overcharged.

The industry body, Energy UK, has also launched a new Commission today as part of its drive to improve customer engagement with a particular focus on vulnerable customers.

Suppliers would not be permitted to use the information they receive for any purpose other than those that are outlined in the Digital Economy Act. In addition to legislative controls and criminal penalties, a code of practice would be put in place alongside detailed contractual arrangements for the handling and protection of the data – see the recent government consultation on Digital Economy Act, part 5: data sharing codes and regulations

Ofgem recently consulted on expanding the eligibility criteria for the safeguard tariff

Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson during a visit to the The Tomb of the Unknown Australian Soldier. Crown copyright.

Under the plans, the interchange between the M25 and the A3 will be redesigned to create four dedicated link roads for all drivers making left turns at the junction while drivers turning right will use a new enlarged junction roundabout.

The A3 will also be widened from three lanes to four between Ockham and Painshill in both directions with two lanes remaining over the M25. A new access road providing better, safer access to several local roads and RHS Garden Wisley will be created. The A245 will also be widened near the Painshill junction to accommodate three lanes of traffic leaving and joining the A3.

Two options for the upgrade were initially put to the public last winter before a preferred option was announced in November. Since then, Highways England has been developing the proposals, including detailed discussions with key stakeholders and residents, including RHS Wisley, Painshill Park and others. Now, a six-week consultation on the updated proposals is underway.

Highways England Regional Delivery Director for the South East Chris Welby-Everard said:

This consultation will help determine the final proposals we end up taking forward for planning permission, so I’d encourage anyone with an interest to get involved and have their say.

Around 100,000 drivers each day use this busy junction to switch between the M25 and A3, with a further 170,000 drivers passing through the junction daily, often getting caught up in rush hour congestion and tailbacks.

We have worked hard on developing the plans further since we announced the preferred option last year. As well as making a real difference to peoples’ journeys, we are proposing better, safer access for the local roads that currently turn directly on to the A3 and offering significantly upgraded crossing points for people on foot, by bike or on horseback and making sure we respect the protected environments nearby. This consultation is an excellent chance to help shape our plans.

This package of improvements will create extra capacity at the junction and the surrounding area and, on opening, will shave up to five minutes off journeys made through the junction during the morning and afternoon peaks.

Visualisation of the proposed improvements at junction 10 on the M25 which includes free flow left turns, an increase from 3 lanes to 4 as well as new dedicated facilities for non-motorised users

The M25/A3 interchange is a key congestion pinch point on the strategic road network and has one of the highest recorded collision rates across the Highways England network. The proposed plans will help to reduce delays, make journeys more reliable, ease congestion and improve safety.

For more information on the consultation, public information dates and how to have your say, visit the scheme website.

General enquiries

Members of the public should contact the Highways England customer contact centre on 0300 123 5000.

Media enquiries

Journalists should contact the Highways England press office on 0844 693 1448 and use the menu to speak to the most appropriate press officer.