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Finance Bill

Behind the measure lies the particular role that the chief financial officer plays in a company. He is the ultimate point of accountability. That is why, in all the companies with which I have been involved, small ones and some comparatively large ones, the chief financial officer has always had the right of appealing direct to the board as a whole, quite apart from the chairman, and to the chairman, but separate from the executive officer. The provision is, in a sense, an extension of the very particular position that the chief financial officer has in relation to an extremely sensitive issue. The Bill is trying to take that a little further by imposing a sanction—which will no doubt be covered by an indemnity—so that the responsibility is registered personally, as all financial matters are and as the hon. Gentleman rightly says, and directly with the financial officer.