Visit London pensioners and creditors are expected to receive the full sums owed to them under a deal announced to the London Assembly today.
Visit London Limited (VLL) was placed into administration in April following the establishment of London & Partners which merged the responsibilities of promotional agencies Visit London, Think London and Study London into a single body.
The firm’s collapse resulted in concerns over the future of its pension scheme and could see members become reliant on the Pension Protection Fund for assistance.
In addition a number of businesses are owed money for services supplied to Visit London.
Mayoral advisor Sir Peter Rogers today told the Assembly’s culture and tourism committee that a deal had been agreed in principle between the Visit London administrators, the Greater London Authority, the pension scheme trustees and Pension Protection Fund and is now waiting formal sign-off by all parties.
Under the deal, the GLA would pay £6m into the pension fund and receive all outstanding assets of Visit London, estimated to be around £3-£3.4m. These would be used to pay creditors who are owed around £2.5m and any administration and professional costs.
The rescue scheme is expected to have a net cost to the GLA of between £3-£2.6m.
Sir Peter told Assembly Members he expected the rescue plan to be signed-off as it was the best deal for pensioners and creditors.
Last week Mayor Boris Johnson told AMs he accepted the placing of Visit London into administration had not been sufficiently thought through and apologised for the concern it had caused pensioners and creditors.
Responding to a question from Labour’s Len Duvall at last week’s Mayor’s Question Session, the Mayor said: “If I’m honest I think things weren’t necessarily carried out with all the thought that they could have been.’
Rogers also told AMs that Visit London’s successor body London & Partners had paid around £400,000 for some of the firms assets. AMs have repeatedly expressed concern that taxpayers have paid to ‘rescue’ assets they had already funded.