Probe: Wilko collapsed into administration in August with the loss of some 12,500 jobs and 398 stores
Wilko bosses face questions from MPs on the retailer’s collapse next week.
Former top dogs and its auditors appear before the Business and Trade Committee on Tuesday after Wilko went under in August – with the loss of some 12,500 jobs and 398 stores.
The news is a victory for unions who demanded a parliamentary inquiry. As revealed by The Mail on Sunday, £77million in dividends was dished out to the owners and shareholders in the decade before its collapse.
MPs will quiz Lisa Wilkinson, who helped manage the discount retail empire for 20 years. It is the first time Wilkinson has addressed the demise in public.
Mark Jackson, who was chief executive, will also be grilled.
They will be asked about the Wilkinson family’s justification for taking millions in dividends, despite its large debts. MPs will also explore what attempts were made to save it.
Two EY auditors will also appear.
The Wilko brand has been sold to The Range, run by tycoon Chris Dawson, dubbed the ‘Del Boy billionaire’.
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