UK government questioned over Carillion contracts after profit warnings

Carillion collapsed on Monday in one of Britain's biggest corporate failures, throwing hundreds of large projects into doubt and forcing the government to step in to guarantee vital public services.

By: Reuters | London | Published: January 16, 2018 2:14 pm

The Carillion logo is seen at a building site in London, Britain January 15, 2018. REUTERS/Peter Nicholls

Britain’s government is under pressure from opposition parties to explain why ministers awarded construction company Carillion 1.3 billion pounds ($1.8 billion) of new contracts after it was known to be in financial difficulty.

Carillion collapsed on Monday in one of Britain’s biggest corporate failures, throwing hundreds of large projects into doubt and forcing the government to step in to guarantee vital public services.

Britain’s opposition Labour and Liberal Democrat parties called for an investigation into the government’s dealings with Carillion before the company collapsed.