Latest slowdown sees company insolvencies jump

The number of English and Welsh companies going bust was 4.4 per cent higher in the the second quarter than a year earlier, as firms struggled to compete in the current economic climate.

The latest statistics released by the Insolvency Service showed that 4,233 companies had been put into liquidation between April and June. One expert said the number would increase in the second half of the year.

The biggest rise was in compulsory liquidations, up 11.1 per cent on July 2011 to 1,290, while creditors' voluntary liquidations were up 1.7 per cent to 2,943 in the same period.

Brian Johnson, an insolvency partner at chartered accountants HW Fisher, said the spike in compulsory liquidations "reflects the more aggressive stance of the Revenue," adding: "We expect activity to really pick up speed during the second half."

There was better news in the statistics covering individual insolvencies, which fell 12.2 per cent to 30,513 in England and Wales during the second quarter of 2011.