VENTURE CAPITALISTS AND WORKERS' RIGHTS

EDM number 2079 in 2005-06, proposed by Gwyn Prosser on 03/05/2006.

That this House regrets that since the motorists' organisation, the AA, was purchased by the venture capitalists CVC and Permira in 2004, some 3,400 of the 10,000 staff who assist motorists have been sacked; notes that the company has indulged in union-busting tactics; further notes that the remaining employees, many of whom are GMB members, have been put under excessive pressure to cope with extra work resulting in some motorists being abandoned at the roadside; is concerned that AA membership charges have risen by up to 30 per cent. while company profits have doubled to £200 million; is alarmed at reports that the venture capitalists are planning to borrow a further £500 million to pay themselves a special dividend that would burden the company with bank borrowings of £1.9 billion and which could jeopardise future pensions; considers this action to be blatant asset stripping by individuals who are protecting their own assets by operating through limited liability companies; and believes that company law should be reformed to prevent speculators from exploiting the protections afforded by limited status and that the interests of the customer and the employee should not be jeopardised by the greed of venture capitalists like Permira and CVC.

This motion has been signed by a total of 50 MPs.