Carillion on the brink as it begs for taxpayers’ cash

ONE of Britain’s largest companies was last night desperately pleading for a vast taxpayer bailout to avert a financial collapse that would put tens of thousands of jobs at risk.

Troubled construction and engineering giant Carillion is set to hold last-ditch rescue talks with Whitehall officials today. The company needs to find £300 million by the end of the month to stay afloat.

The group already receives more than £1 billion of taxpayers’ money in government contracts each year. It employs 19,500 staff in the UK.

Despite the lucrative income from the state, Carillion has debts of more than £900 million, and a £600 million hole in its pension fund.

The Prime Minister i s being briefed on the crisis, with accountancy firm EY on standby to act as administrator if Carillion goes into administration.

Liberal Democrat leader and former Business Secretary Sir Vince Cable said: ‘The Government can’t just do a financial bailout. The shareholders and the creditors – the big banks – have got to take a hit.’

Much of the blame for Carillion’s parlous state is being directed at former boss Richard Howson, 49, who left last September, having received more than £6 million in pay and bonuses since taking over as chief executive in 2012. He will continue to receive his £660,000 basic salary until his notice period expires at the end of October.

Labour MP Rachel Reeves, who chairs the influential Business Select Committee, said: ‘It’s absolutely staggering that after resigning following a profits warning, the chief executive has continued to take home more than £ 50,000 a month. He shouldn’t be paid. He should be taking responsibility.’

Carillion’s state projects include the HS2 high-speed rail-line, and the construction of major hospitals, schools and roads.

The Wolverhampton-based firm is the second-largest supplier to Network Rail, and maintains about half the UK’s prisons and about 50,000 homes for the Ministry of Defence. It has been awarded several major government contracts in recent months despite issuing a series of stark profit warnings.

A spokesman said Carillion is ‘in constructive dialogue in relation to additional short-term financing’.

But MPs warned that a failure of the business would cause ‘a huge crisis’ and put thousands of jobs at risk.

The Government has already prepared a contingency plan for Carillion’s collapse, and it is understood to have drafted in private sector advisers to handle the fall-out for projects and contracts. The Cabinet Office i s al ready t outing Carillion’s contracts to rival firms.

Insiders said yesterday t hat administration is ‘inevitable’ unless the Government steps in.

‘It is hard to see how Carillion can go on much longer,’ a senior industry source said. ‘Unless they can pull a rabbit out of the hat, they risk entering a death spiral.’

A spokesman for the GMB union said Carillion bosses ‘should not be rewarded for failure with public money’.