Interest in Canary Wharf high

ERNST & Young, the administrator of Canary Wharf, said yesterday that it had received inquiries for over one million square feet of space in the project since it went into administration five weeks ago.

Only about 800,000 sq ft of the 4.5 million sq ft project developed by Olympia and York is occupied. Three prospective tenants, who are to rent nearly 800,000 sq ft between them, are threatening to pull out.

Alan Bloom, the joint administrator, said over half the inquiries came from the Government. In a letter to tenants, he said the firm had also received a large number of inquiries from people wanting to rent shops.

In Toronto, O&Y and its principal creditors broke a deadlock over who is to pay the company's overhead and restructuring costs during the summer while negotiations continue on a refinancing plan. The Cdollars 25m ( pounds 10.8m) will come from a combination of new management fees for O&Y buildings and the sale of unencumbered assets owned by the parent.