Member

On Amendment 21, I recognise the concern raised by noble Lords. Suppliers may be carrying unpaid debts when a company enters special administration. That can be difficult, particularly for smaller businesses supporting essential services. I appreciate the particular concern where insolvency legislation restricts a supplier’s ability to terminate a contract or make continued supply conditional on payment of pre-appointment debts. However, the relevant insolvency provisions contain their own protections and mechanisms, including provisions relating to payment for post-insolvency supplies and safeguards where continued supply would cause hardship. We do not consider that those carefully calibrated arrangements should be recast through the Bill. Giving one group of creditors preferential treatment could disadvantage others, including employees and HMRC, and would cut across established statutory priority rules. The Bill is focused on tackling late payment through clearer statutory payment periods and related measures, not on amending insolvency law, creditor priorities or special administration regimes.