Member

I have a number of queries about ACSPs. First, why do we need them? The Minister was clear about what they do but not about why we need them. In the first instance, this process will be handled directly by Companies House, but will also be handled indirectly through the ACSPs. I have some concerns about those ACSPs because past experience has shown that there are bad operators out there offering services which are designed deliberately to obfuscate the proper ownership of these companies. The Minister was clear as to what information needs to be gathered. He was not clear as to what happens if an ACSP is proved not to be doing that. What is the process for suspending, eliminating or deauthorising an ACSP? Does the ACSP have the right to transfer ownership? Let us say that one client registers a company through an ACSP and a second client comes to the same ACSP—can there be inter-ownership transfer at an ACSP level or does all of this have to be supervised and authorised by Companies House?