Collapsed toy chain to shut all 100 stores

TOYS R Us is to shut all 100 of its UK stores after administrators failed to find a buyer for the collapsed retailer, resulting in the loss of 3,000 jobs.

The toy chain appointed Moorfields Advisory to oversee an administration at the end of February but the group said “it has not been possible to secure a sale”.

A total of 67 staff at the company’s head office in Maidenhead have now been made redundant and 25 stores have either closed in recent days or are due to close by today. These stores had been earmarked for closure as part of a restructuring before its demise and Moorfields will now begin a six-week “wind down” of the remaining estate.

Simon Thomas, joint administrator and partner at Moorfields, said: “We have made every effort to secure a buyer for all or part of the company’s business. This process attracted some interest, but ultimately no party has been able to move forward with a formal bid prior to the expiration of the stated deadline.

“It is therefore with great regret that we have made the difficult decision to make a number of positions redundant at the company’s head office in Maidenhead and proceed with a controlled store closure programme.

Toys R Us is one of the nation’s biggest toy retailers, employing more than 3,000 across 100 stores in the UK.

Moorfields said at the time of the chain’s collapse that it was making “every effort” to secure a buyer for all or part of the business, but no suitor materialised.

The retail sector has had a dismal start to 2018, with the collapse Maplin and a host of firms undergoing restructurings. MINISTERS ARE “scrambling round” to fill parliamentary time in a bid to avoid damaging votes on Brexit, a senior Labour MP has claimed.

Labour’s Leeds Central MP Hilary Benn, who chairs the Brexit Select Committee, accused the Government of hosting a two-day “general debate” on European affairs in the Commons as means to avoid a vote on the UK’s continued membership of a customs union after exit day.

Shadow Brexit minister Matthew Pennycook said it was “frankly extraordinary” the Government was holding a general debate on European affairs rather than dealing with Brexit-related legislation.

The debates prevent a vote on Conservative MP Anna Soubry’s EU customs union amendment to the Trade Bill – new clause five – which would force the Government to commit the UK “to participate after exit day in a customs union with the EU.”

Mr Benn warned ministers that they would “not be able to put those votes off permanently.”

Separately, Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said no agreement was reached over the UK Government’s EU (Withdrawal) Bill following talks with Theresa May in Downing Street yesterday. The Prime Minister held talks with Ms Sturgeon and the First Minister of Wales Carwyn Jones in a bid to end the dispute which has developed with the devolved governments over the UK Government’s flagship EU Withdrawal Bill.

Ms Sturgeon said: “There was certainly an indication on all sides that we want to reach agreement.”

There was now “real urgency” to reach a deal but there was an important issue of principle at stake, she said. “We can’t have our powers restricted or reduced without the consent of the Scottish Parliament.”

Mrs May later welcomed the prime minister of Luxembourg, Xavier Bettel, to Downing Street, and said she wants to maintain close economic and security ties with the EU in the future.