Tag Archives: HM Government

This will be the Trade Envoy’s fifth visit to Ghana in his role as Trade Envoy to Ghana – and his third since the inauguration of His Excellency President Nana Akufo-Addo on 7 January.

This visit is about showcasing how UK expertise and investment can partner with Ghana to transform the Infrastructure and Oil & Gas sectors in support of the President’s drive to move “Ghana Beyond Aid”.

Adam Afriyie will meet with key members of the Government of Ghana, including Vice President Bawumia, the Minister for Rail Development and the Minister Transport. Alongside the newly appointed British High Commissioner Iain Walker, he will also visit Takoradi to explore how UK companies working in Oil and Gas are responding to the opportunities in Ghana after the ITLOS ruling.

The UK and Ghana share common interests and values. Adam Afriyie MP will be encouraging more UK businesses to invest in the infrastructure sector and pushing Ghana as a choice destination for UK exports and investments to strengthen ties and build a shared future. As part of this, he will be discussing an ‘Infrastructure is GREAT’ Forum which the UK Department for International Trade (DIT), with support from the UK Ghana Chamber of Commerce, will host at The Kempinski Hotel, Accra Ghana on Tuesday 28 November 2017. It will be a unique opportunity to engage with British Businesses to discuss how they and the UK government can unlock private sector opportunities that can deliver jobs, skills and economic growth for Ghana.

On returning to Ghana Adam Afriyie MP said: “ It is great to be back. I am looking forward to seeing the scale of Infrastructure plans now that the Government is really pushing ahead with its agenda and understand the opportunities for leading UK companies – not least after the conclusion of the ITLOS international arbitration which has provided reassurance and certainty on the future of Ghana’s Oil and Gas sector.”

Speaking about the visit, Iain Walker said: “Our trade has dropped 30% since 2012. As Ghana moves “Beyond Aid” I want to see the UK private sector investing and partnering with the Government of Ghana in the areas that will transform Ghana’s future, creating sustainable growth and employment opportunities. Our focus is on supporting high value projects to enable Ghana to achieve its development agenda, particularly infrastructure needs, including such as Rails, Roads, Ports. Our bilateral trade stood at a peak of £ 1.5 billion in 2012 and has hovered at about £ 1 billion pounds since. I am committed to doing all I can to get this trade back up to peak levels. ”

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Both have just returned from NATO and counter-Daesh Ministerial meetings in Brussels, where the alliance agreed to adapt its command structure to better reflect the security environment, announcing the establishment of two new headquarters: an Atlantic Command and a Logistics Command.

NATO is the cornerstone of UK and US defence and both nations have been leading calls for NATO to adapt to future threats. The meeting in London focussed on three themes: current threats, capability and shared prosperity.

Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson said:

“From fighting in the trenches of the Great War to countering Russian aggression and tackling Daesh today, the UK has been America’s closest partner for a century. Today our countries are cooperating on everything from operations and intelligence to innovation and this meeting is an opportunity to continue strengthening our special relationship.”

Despite being close to defeat in Iraq and Syria, Daesh remains a concern for the UK and US and the British Defence Secretary reaffirmed his support to the US-led coalition. The pair also discussed the increasing assertiveness from the Kremlin, as the UK stands side by side with US and NATO allies, leading the enhanced Forward Presence Battlegroup in Estonia and contributing soldiers to the US-led Battlegroup in Poland.

Amongst only six NATO countries meeting the commitment to spend at least 2% of GDP on defence, the UK and US are investing heavily in next generation technology, including the F-35 aircraft. US F-35s will fly from the HMS Queen Elizabeth carrier in 2021, demonstrating the close relationship between the two countries.

The defence trading relationship between the UK and US is worth £3 billion a year and as the UK looks beyond Brexit, both countries hope to strengthen that relationship too.

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Roland Rudd is a passionate supporter of the arts and led the Tate’s Corporate Advisory Group for ten years. He was previously a board member of the Royal Opera House.

He is Chairman of Finsbury, a global communications consultancy. Before founding Finsbury, he was a financial journalist at the Financial Times, the Sunday Correspondent and the Times.

He is also Chairman of Governors of Millfield School, Chairman of Open Britain, a trustee of Speakers for Schools, trustee of the Bayreuth Festival, and an Ambassador for the ‘Made by Dyslexia’ campaign.

The role is not remunerated and this appointment has been made in accordance with the Cabinet Office’s Governance Code on Public Appointments.

Under the Code, any significant political activity undertaken by an appointee in the last five years must be declared. This is defined as including holding office, public speaking, making a recordable donation, or candidature for election. Roland Rudd has declared that he has made recordable donations to Tessa Jowell, and made donations and held office in relation to Britain Stronger in Europe. Details can be obtained from the Electoral Commission website.

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The Group of States Against Corruption (GRECO) publishes its second fourth round compliance report on the United Kingdom.

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On 12 September 2017 the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy accepted a disqualification undertaking from Mr Costel Titu, former director of Titus Services 4 UK Ltd (Titus), for making false representations to the Court and the company’s liquidator. Mr Titu’s disqualification commenced on 3 October 2017 and will end on 2 October 2028.

Mr Titu attempted to undermine the validity of the appointment of Ms F Qureshi as Creditors’ Voluntary Liquidator by falsely claiming that he was not a director or shareholder at the time of the liquidator’s appointment.

This was in an attempt to stop recovery proceedings issued by the liquidator against Mr Titu and another, relating to various payments made by Titus to them and for cash withdrawals. The total amount claimed by the liquidator was £156,875.

Mr Titu attempted to undermine the validity of the liquidator’s appointment by falsely stating that he had no authority to appoint her as liquidator with the intended consequence of stopping the liquidator from pursuing him for amounts recoverable to the company.

On 5 May 2017, a final hearing in respect of the liquidator’s action was heard at Companies Court which found in favour of the liquidator and considered that the transaction complained of was a sham and that Mr Titu had attempted to mislead the liquidator and the Court into believing that he was not the sole director of Titus.

On 14 July 2016 notice of termination of Mr Titu’s directorship of Titus was filed at Companies House, with an effective date of 18 August 2014. The company has been in liquidation since 22 October 2014.

Anthony Hannon, Official Receiver in the Public Interest Unit, said:

The Insolvency Service will look closely at any evidence of misconduct and take appropriate action where directors have attempted to mislead insolvency professionals and the Court, as has happened in this case.

Titus Services 4 UK Ltd (CRO No. 06217488) was incorporated on 18 April 2007.

Mr Titu is of Dagenham, and his date of birth is February 1974.

On 22 October 2014 Ms F Qureshi of Parker Getty Business Rescue and Recovery was appointed as Creditors’ Voluntary Liquidator of Titus.

On 23 January 2017, the liquidator of Titus sought the assistance of the Official Receiver to see if the Share Purchase Agreement and directors’ resignation were genuine.

On 5 May 2017 the Official Receiver’s staff attended the final hearing of the Validity Application and decided that given that Mr Titu had made false representations to the Court and the Liquidator that it was in the public interest to carry out an investigation into this matter for disqualification purposes.

On 4 July 2017 the Insolvency Service wrote to Mr Titu stating that it was their intention to commence disqualification proceedings against him.

On 26 July 2017 solicitors for the Insolvency Service filed an application under S7(2) of the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986 seeking permission to commence out of time disqualification proceedings.

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]( https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/corporate-insolvency-effect-of-a-disqualification-order

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.

You can also follow the Insolvency Service on:

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