Company Law Bill [HL]

moved Amendment No. A125:"Page 292, leave out lines 7 and 8." The noble Lord said: In moving Amendment No. A125, I shall speak also to Amendments Nos. A126 and A127. The amendments make the right to inspect the register under Clause 602 subject to certain restrictions set out in a new clause inserted after Clause 602. The new clause provides that the company must allow the inspection only if satisfied that it is for a proper purpose. If it refuses, the person concerned may apply to the court for it to allow the inspection. On further reflection since tabling the amendment, we have made a further small change to Amendment No. A127 to provide in subsection (6) that where the court makes no direction to the company to comply with the request to inspect the register, the company must not comply with the request. This change removes any suggestion that the company may have discretion to comply with a request that the court has not endorsed. The amendments follow the approach we have taken in Clause 116 which concerns the right to inspect and request copies of the register of members. I beg to move. On Question, amendment agreed to.