Companies House

Companies House proposes to erase the accounts of dissolved firms after six years in an attempt to reform the storage and public access of data.  Public access is free and the storage costs are minimal.

According to forensic accountants, this would disrupt investigations into corruption and fraud and reverse the UK’s push to be a global leader in “open data”.

As well as forensic accountants, police investigators, the National Crime Agency, the Serious Fraud Office, lawyers, journalists and bank compliance teams all make extensive use of the data, with many searches involving dissolved companies and their directors.

If the proposal is enacted, more than 2.5 million records could be lost and critics warn that such a move would be a major step back in the global fight against corruption.

Without these records, justice will be that much harder to achieve, as fraudsters’ wrong-doings will be hidden.