A FORMER employee of collapsed high-street giant BHS has launched a campaign calling on the ex-owner Sir Philip Green to help bail out the threatened pensions of staff.
Pensioner Lin Macmillan has enlisted support of former colleagues and employees of other stricken firms to lobby UK parliamentarians to hold the family of Sir Philip, at least in part, to account for the crisis.
The 61-year-old charity secretary worked in a BHS managerial role in both Aberdeen and Lincoln during the 1980s but was prompted to act when it became apparent how many employees, past and present, stand to lose out because of the state of the company’s pension pot.
READ MORE: Scottish BHS staff break their silence over their bitter betrayal
Ms Macmillan, of Bo’ness, West Lothian, launched her online campaign with the intention of both highlighting the plight of BHS staff and lobbying those at Westminster to take the cases on board when company representatives are summoned to Parliament. MPs looking into the demise of BHS have written to the insolvency regulator and the Serious Fraud Office offering to cooperate with their investigations.
The retail billionaire, his wife Tina and Anthony Grabiner, chairman of Mr Green’s retail empire Arcadia for more than a decade, are being asked to appear before two parliamentary committees to give evidence about BHS’ demise. Iain Wright MP said Mr Green has enormous questions to answer.
BHS called in administrators last month, putting almost 11,000 jobs at risk, a year after Arcadia’s 15-year ownership ended and it was sold to former racing-car driver Dominic Chappell for £1.
READ MORE: Sir Philip Green faces grilling by MPs over BHS dividend payments
Questions are now being asked about how its £571 million pension deficit will affect the Pension Protection Fund, a rescue scheme funded by contributions from other pension pots.
Mr Green is expected to go to Parliament in mid-June after the committees have taken evidence from other parties, including Chappell and the BHS pension trustees.
Ms Macmillan said her own pension pot was relatively unaffected at this stage by the collapse but could diminish in the event of a significant increase in inflation. She said revelations that the Green family had bought a third yacht had infuriated her, leading to her campaign Sell The Yachts, Pay The Pensions.
READ MORE: Watchdog launches pensions probe into collapsed retailer BHS
Ms Macmillan said: “What I would like to achieve is justice for the people who have worked for many years for BHS, both existing staff and the pensioners who are seeing their financial situations threatened at the moment.
“I would like to think the Green family would repay some of the money they have taken from the company and help bail out the pensions.
“I hope Sir Philip Green’s family would recognise that they have a moral obligation.”
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