“I am not in control of the process”: Philip Green denies trying to blackmail the Pensions Regulator over the BHS Pension scheme
Sir Philip Green has hit back at allegations he has tried to blackmail The Pensions Regulator in his ongoing negotiations over BHS' pension deficit.
The retail tycoon – who sold BHS to serial bankrupt Dominic Chappell for £1 – said he was "not in control of the process".
He said:
There have also been suggestions in the press that I have tried to pressurise the regulator, or, as was stated on the front page of one newspaper, "blackmail" it. This is wholly untrue. I am not in control of the process.
I am following the process which has been set down by the regulator. Pensions are extremely complex issues, especially when there are more than 20,000 members involved.
Deloitte and Linklaters are acting for Green as he tries to come up with a sum of money to plug BHS' ballooning pension deficit. He said he was "working on the issue on a daily basis".
Green was particularly angry at Frank Field MP, chair of the Work and Pensions select committee, who has attacked him for failing to reach a settlement for the BHS pension scheme.
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"Mr Field suggested in the House of Commons on Wednesday there was a lack of willingness on my part to reach a settlement with regard to the pension fund," he said.
"This is untrue, totally inaccurate and unhelpful in solving this issue."
BHS stores closed for good last month as joint administrators Duff & Phelps and FRP Advisory entered the final stages of shutting down the business. When BHS moves into liquidation, FRP Advisory will take sole responsibility for the work, as questions have been raised over Duff & Phelps' independence from Green.