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56-606: Prior to 1997, Crown Agents was a UK public statutory corporation , overseen by the British Ministry of Overseas Development . Crown Agents originated as a body conducting financial transactions for British colonies . Agents were first appointed in 1749 to transfer and account for grants made to colonies from the British Treasury . These representatives were known unofficially as 'Crown Agents' from at least 1758, and were accountable to colonial governments, though selected on

112-518: A government or controlled by national or sub-national government to the (in some cases minimal) extent provided for in the creating legislation. Bodies described in the English language as "statutory corporations" exist in the following countries in accordance with the associated descriptions (where provided). In Australia , statutory corporations are a type of statutory authority created by Acts of state or federal parliaments. A statutory corporation

168-493: A transit district or special purpose corporations such as a university , are also created by statute. In some states, a city or county can be created by petition of a certain number or percentage of voters or landholders of the affected area, which then causes a municipal corporation to be chartered as a result of compliance with the appropriate law. Corporations to be established for most other purposes are usually just incorporated as any other non-profit corporation , by filing

224-467: A Special Act of the Parliament. The Act defines its powers and functions, rules and regulations governing its employees and its relationship with government departments. This is a body corporate created by the legislature with defined powers and functions and is financially independent with a clear control over a specified area or a particular type of commercial activity. It is a corporate person and has

280-466: A commercial basis with less or no political interference.) As statutory corporations, their regulatory and business conditions may be significantly different from private-sector companies. A significant number of the statutory corporations are private commercial operations, a number of which have been privatised, in part or in whole, since the 1980s: these have included the national airline Qantas , Telstra (also previously known as Telecom Australia) and

336-587: A freight forwarding limited company, in 1973/74. The appointment of John Cuckney in October 1974 was the first step in rescuing the Crown Agents and restoring confidence in its traditional functions. He instituted a programme of controlled disposals, realizing what he could from the property and banking investments. Probably the most intransigent were the Australian property investments which took some years to bring under

392-510: A possible £35m. There was also a commitment to a wide range of secondary banks. Margaret Reid regarded the Crown Agents’ support for them as “much the biggest and widely discussed amount of finance for the Bank of England 's Lifeboat support operation”. Institutions singled out included Triumph Investment Trust, Sterling Industrial Trust and Burston Group. Crown Agents also acquired Greenshields Cowie,

448-773: A result of the enabling law. There are a number of federally chartered corporations that still exist. Some relatively famous ones include the Boy Scouts of America , each of the Federal Reserve Banks , and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation . The basic advantage for being federally chartered is that no other corporation anywhere in the United States is allowed to have the same name. William Stern (businessman) William George Stern (born Vilmos György Stern , 2 July 1935 – 21 March 2020)

504-602: A state-owned corporation as "a statutory authority that has corporate status". Current statutory corporations include Australia Post , Airservices Australia , the Australian Rail Track Corporation and the Australian Egg Corporation . The purpose of their separation from normal government operations is to ensure profitability, and in theory, independence of decision making from the state or national government (to ensure that decisions are made on

560-530: A statutory corporation is a body corporate, which is created under a particular Act of the Oireachtas . Some statutory corporations are expected to operate as if they were a commercial company (with or without a subsidy from the Exchequer , depending on whether or not it would make a profit without one). Such bodies do not have shareholders , but are typically boards appointed by a sponsor minister. The provisions of

616-535: Is defined in the federal Department of Finance 's glossary as a "statutory body that is a body corporate, including an entity created under section 87 of the PGPA Act" (i.e. a statutory authority may also be a statutory corporation). An earlier definition describes a statutory corporation as "a statutory authority that is a body corporate", and the New South Wales Government 's Land Registry Services defines

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672-464: Is not used to describe a company which operates as a conventional shareholder-owned company registered under the Companies Acts. A public body can have a variety of forms and is not inevitably a statutory corporation, nor is a statutory corporation necessarily a public body. At the state level, municipal corporations and counties are often created by legislative acts. Some organizations such as

728-531: Is one of the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office's (FCDO) flagship health programmes. Phase 1 of the programme has been delivered and focused on increasing access to preventive services, including family planning, water, sanitation and long lasting insecticide treated bednets. It also improved service quality in line with the maternal and child health priorities of the President's 10-24 Month Recovery Plan. Now in

784-577: Is the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation , which owns the railway network and was previously also an operator. The MTR Corporation Limited was also such a company, then named as Mass Transit Railway Corporation. Other examples include the Ocean Park Corporation , and the former Industrial Estates Corporation and Land Development Corporation . Statutory corporations are government establishments brought into existence by

840-629: Is the general denomination for administrative divisions within the Dutch state or certain other types of governmental organisations. In the United Kingdom , a statutory corporation is a corporate body created by statute . It typically has no shareholders and its powers are defined by the Act of Parliament which creates it, and may be modified by later legislation. Such bodies have often been created to provide public services, examples including British Railways ,

896-642: The Commonwealth Bank . A statutory corporation in Germany is called a Körperschaft des öffentlichen Rechts (KdöR). An example of a statutory corporation is a Kassenärztliche Vereinigung , a body involved in the provision of out-patient medical services in a German state. Other examples include public broadcasters, Jewish communities and Christian churches established in Germany and some public transport providers (depending on jurisdiction). In Hong Kong, some corporations are incorporated by legislation. An example

952-837: The Ffestiniog Railway , the Talyllyn Railway , the National Coal Board , Post Office Corporation and Transport for London . Other examples include the county councils , the National Assembly for Wales , the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Channel Four Television Corporation , and the Olympic Delivery Authority . Statutory corporations are widely used in education: Sixth Form College Corporations and Further Education Corporations,

1008-663: The 1990s with debts of £11 million. He was subsequently banned from serving as a company director for twelve years in April 2000, following the emergence of evidence that he had appropriated £1.5 million from the business despite his prior knowledge that it was on the brink of failure. In 1957 or 1958, he married Shoshana Stempel (Freshwater) . In 2000, Stern was living in a "£4m six-bedroom mansion" in West Heath Avenue, Hampstead, London, owned another home in Jerusalem, and

1064-561: The Agents to its traditional activity. However, uncertainty continued over the legal status of the Crown Agents and it was not until the Crown Agents Act 1979 that the legal and constitutional position was regularized. The Act established the Agents as a corporate body under formal name of Crown Agents for Oversea Governments and Administrations. In April 2016 its financial services arm, Crown Agents Bank and Crown Agents Investment Management ,

1120-563: The Agents' full control. One of the most important organizational decisions made by Cuckney was in March 1977, concerning the Agents’ subsidiary, Millbank Technical Services. Millbank had been established in 1967 to offer services “outside their traditional agency role.” In effect, it had become a substantial exporter of military equipment. Millbank was transferred to the Ministry of Defence , thereby returning

1176-503: The Companies' Acts do not typically directly apply to such bodies, although their founding legislation may specify similar requirements. The statutory corporation format was usually the form most state-sponsored bodies of the Republic of Ireland took until recent years; however, the usual policy today is that a private limited company by shares or public limited company incorporated under

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1232-584: The Companies' Acts is set up instead, with the relevant minister holding 100% of the issued share capital. Nonetheless, as of 2007 several prominent statutory corporations continue to exist, such as Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ), the Electricity Supply Board (ESB), Bord Gáis Éireann , An Bord Pleanála , the Food Safety Authority of Ireland . In the Netherlands , the term "public body"

1288-606: The Crown Agents Foundation includes a number of member organizations. Those include: Former members include the Chartered Institute of Building and Care International . The work of Crown Agents has won several awards throughout the years. The most notable are: Statutory corporation A statutory corporation is a government entity created as a statutory body by statute . Their precise nature varies by jurisdiction, but they are corporations owned by

1344-480: The Crown Agents and, in particular, the actions of certain of its staff, lacked competence and good judgement.” The parliamentary debate on the Fay report in turn led to the establishment in March 1978 of a Tribunal "to inquire to what extent there were lapses from accepted standards of commercial or professional conduct or of public administration in relation to the operations of the Crown Agents as financiers on own account in

1400-595: The Crown Agents, which necessitated a bail-out by the Government, was one of the most high-profile failures of the 1974 property and secondary banking crisis, and widely considered a scandal. The decline in its traditional government business had led the Crown Agents “to consider ways of diversifying…and operating on their own account rather than acting as agents for others…So began a short but disastrous period in an otherwise long and distinguished service to others” The move into own account trading dated back to March 1967 and by

1456-633: The Crown Agents’ finances became increasingly apparent during 1974 and in October John Cuckney was appointed to sort out the problems. To meet the potential financial shortfall, the Crown Agents received an £85m grant from the Government. Recognition of the severity of the Agents’ problems, the necessity for further financial support and the political ramifications led to the establishment of the Fay Committee of Enquiry in April 1975; that Committee reported on 1 December 1977. Among its detailed findings

1512-480: The Government of Nepal to support public financial management (PFM) reform at the national, sub-national and sectoral level, encouraging greater financial accountability throughout the system. The Nepal Public Financial Management and Accountability Programme (PFMA) supports reforms in government policies, systems and activities to improve PFM and revenue systems, reducing opportunities for corruption in Government of Nepal (GoN) service delivery sectors that matter most for

1568-899: The Oxford AstraZeneca (Covishield) vaccine were delivered to the country. Ascend is the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's (FCDO) £200 million flagship health programme to protect millions of people worldwide from Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs). The programme works towards the sustainable control and elimination of NTDs in approximately 20 high burden countries in Africa and Asia and focuses on five NTDs: lymphatic filariasis, schistosomiasis, visceral leishmaniasis and trachoma. The programme contributes to Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets 3.3 and 3.8. Implemented between September 2019 to March 2022, Ascend consists of two Lots - one focusing on South Asia, East and Southern Africa (Lot 1) and

1624-625: The Public Health Informatics Institute and the International Association of National Public Health Institutes on the Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance (CHAMPS) Sierra Leone programme. With the country having some of the highest rates of child mortality in the world, CHAMPS’ goal is to produce the data needed to inform evidence-based policies that can prevent deaths of under 5-year olds. To achieve this,

1680-611: The South Sudan Health Pooled Fund (now in its third phase- HPF3). HPF is a partnership with the Government of South Sudan's Ministry of Health (MoH). In Zimbabwe, Crown Agents implements the Results-Based Financing (RBF) programme in partnership with Zimbabwe Ministry of Health. In Sierra Leone, Crown Agents is delivering the Saving Lives Programme as part of a public health consortium. Saving Lives

1736-524: The Stern Group. As a result of the stock market crash and secondary bank crisis of 1973–74 , property prices in Britain tumbled dramatically. Investment fund customers attempted to liquidate their rapidly devaluing bonds, but the funds had insufficient cash to meet their redemption obligations, leading to their collapse. Nation Life, and its parent company, were forced into administration , and William Stern

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1792-732: The United Kingdom Government machine. The Crown Agents are simply two individuals …who have been appointed by the Secretary of State for the Colonies. In 1861 the office was renamed Crown Agents for the Colonies . Crown Agents' responsibilities on behalf of colonial governments included accounting for Treasury grants, purchasing supplies, recruiting certain staff and raising capital on the markets. Crown Agents also oversaw specific colonial projects, such as certain stamp issues and some infrastructure construction. As decolonisation accelerated,

1848-472: The capacity of acting in its own name. Statutory corporations therefore have the power of the government and the considerable amount of operating flexibility of private enterprises. A few are: Features: Which define its objectives, power and duties. It is created by a special law Of parliament. It may be established by the central government are also known as National corporations. In the Republic of Ireland ,

1904-792: The company has provided governmental services as large as reforming the customs system of Angola , and transforming the central medical stores in Zambia. Crown Agents is a member of the Partnership for Supply Chain Management, a partnership of thirteen private sector, non-governmental and faith-based organizations that implements the SCMS project, providing a reliable, cost-effective and secure supply of products for HIV/AIDS programs. Crown Agents partners with development agencies, donors, private corporations, foundations and governments. Some of them are: Additionally,

1960-535: The country's health sector procurement. Crown Agents’ achievements in Ukraine have been recognised in the international magazine The Economist: “ The health ministry contracted Crown Agents…and two United Nations bodies to buy medicines on its behalf…When the results came back…they showed a 38% saving compared with 2015, without compromising on the quality of the drugs. Whereas before, two or three suppliers dominated supply, Crown Agents have brought in almost 30, thus defeating

2016-406: The creation of the first unitised property funds . Initially, only pension funds and charities were permitted to purchase units in these trusts, but these regulations were relaxed under the leadership of Prime Minister Edward Heath who came to power in 1970, after which time the general public could also invest via insurance companies . One such intermediary was Nation Life Insurance , part of

2072-402: The end of the 1960s, the activities of the Agents were being publicly queried by The Sunday Times and Private Eye . By 1970, concerns were being raised in Parliament. Judith Hart later referred back to her earlier comments, saying the "constitutional relationship between the Crown Agents and the Government, which was somewhat obscure..." The impact of the financial and property collapse on

2128-528: The legal form of Sixth Form Colleges and Further Education Colleges , as well as Higher Education Corporations, the legal form of most post-1992 universities , are all statutory corporations created under the Education Reform Act 1988 and the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 ; a small number of older universities are also statutory corporations created under specific acts of parliament. The phrase

2184-420: The office was renamed Crown Agents for Oversea Governments and Administrations in 1954, and the rules were changed to allow it to take on projects for independent states (Iraq being the first example). Crown Agents expanded its activities to include more international development projects and investment management. The world's first sovereign wealth funds were managed by Crown Agents. The financial collapse of

2240-486: The operation of institutions and procedures.” The best-known of the Crown Agents’ investments was with the William Stern group; Stern himself became Britain's largest ever bankrupt to date and the losses of the Crown Agents were reported to be £54m. Less well-known but also a substantial problem were the Australian property investments held under the umbrella of English and Continental Group, where losses were estimated as

2296-604: The other on West and Central Africa (Lot 2). Crown Agents leads Ascend Lot 1 and works with a consortium of technical partners, including Abt Associates, Oriole Global Health and the Royal Tropical Institute. Central to the Ascend Lot 1 approach is close collaboration with National Governments and other implementing partners to enhance national approaches to NTD control and elimination. In South Sudan, Crown Agents provides 10 million people with life-saving healthcare through

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2352-660: The paperwork with the appropriate agency as part of the formation of the entity. At the Federal level, a small number of corporations are created by Congress . Prior to the District of Columbia being granted the ability to issue corporate charters in the late 19th century, corporations operating in the District required a congressional charter . With limited exceptions, most corporations created by Congress are not federally chartered, but are simply created as District of Columbia corporations as

2408-683: The poor. PFMA2 builds on some elements of a previous programme (Deepening Public Financial Management and Accountability in Nepal) that supported PFM reforms within specific sectors (such as health, climate change, and peace and justice) and delivered analysis on fiduciary risks across the UK Aid Nepal portfolio. Through training and professional development programmes, Crown Agents has worked for over 50 years with governments, NGOs, private and public sector corporations offering scheduled training courses, customised programmes and consultancy services. Furthermore,

2464-543: The programme seeks to identify definitive causes of death of children under 5 using digital data collection tools and Minimally Invasive Tissue Samples (MITS). Crown Agents is contracted by Emory University, who leads the programme globally, as the Fiscal Agent for Sierra Leone while also providing management oversight of the programme. Since 2015, Crown Agents has been supporting the Ministry of Health in Ukraine in strengthening

2520-533: The recommendation of the British government. A single body was created in 1833, when the Crown Agents' business was consolidated under two Joint Agents General for Crown Colonies with an office of several staff. The opening words of A. W. Abbott's history were telling in the light of events to follow. “The Crown Agents have no formal Constitution and are not part of the United Kingdom Civil Service or of

2576-503: The safety of more than 200 vulnerable schools in Nepal and build the resilience of pupils, staff and the wider community to disasters. To achieve this, the NSSP upgrades physical infrastructure to be more resilient, strengthens disaster risk management in schools and ensures disaster resilience informs curriculum and teacher training and resources. Crown Agents also works in partnership with donors and

2632-463: The second phase the programme builds on the gains of the first phase, increasing equitable access to improved reproductive, maternal, newborn, child health services, whilst strengthening local health systems for more sustainable service delivery. Crown Agents is also working with partners at the Sierra Leone Ministry of Health and Sanitation, the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention,

2688-411: The time there was no compensation scheme in place to protect them. As a direct consequence of Nation Life's failure, the 1975 Policyholders' Protection Act was introduced, which mandates investors' insurance be paid for by a one per cent levy on investment premiums. After being discharged in 1987, Stern resumed his business activities, until a second commercial empire under his control collapsed in

2744-534: The tricks previously used to corner the market. ” In Libya, Crown Agents implements the three-year programme Tazeez, financed by the UK Government's (FCDO's) Conflict Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) and supported by the Government of Libya. In Nepal, Crown Agents manages the Nepal Safer Schools Project (NSSP), a Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO)-funded project seeking to increase

2800-530: The victims of the 2010 Earthquake in Haiti , the 2014 Ebola outbreak and Hurricane Irma in 2017. Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Crown Agents has been involved in transporting medical equipment and vaccines to remote locations. On 15 January 2021, Crown Agents was appointed procurement agent to secure Covid-19 vaccines on behalf of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine. On 23 February, 500,000 doses of

2856-519: The years 1967–1974. The Tribunal findings were submitted in March 1982. In a formal statement to the House of Commons, the Prime Minister reported that “the tribunal has identified a number of serious shortcomings that existed at that time, not only in relation to the conduct of individuals, in respect of some of whom lapses or criticisms falling short of lapses were formally specified, but also in relation to

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2912-473: Was a British businessman most notable as the owner of the Stern Group of companies. When it collapsed in 1973, Stern became Britain's biggest bankrupt with debts of £118 million. The uninsured losses sustained by thousands of investors led directly to the creation of Britain's first Policyholders' Protection Act . He died during the COVID-19 pandemic due to complications brought on by COVID-19 . He

2968-630: Was born Vilmos György Stern or Ze’ev HaKohen Stern in Budapest, the youngest of three children of Chaim Stern, who owned a textile factory supplying goods to the Hungarian government. When Hungary was invaded by Nazi Germany in March 1944, Stern along with his family, escaped on the Kastner train , which carried 1,684 Jews to safety in Switzerland . During the 1960s, rising economic fortunes in Britain led to

3024-466: Was declared bankrupt. Renowned lawyer and longtime business partner Winston Held ensured that himself, Stern and other investors in Stern Group managed to keep almost all of the personal wealth that they had accrued through many years of directorship at the company. The scandal was raised in the British Parliament on several occasions, and a BBC documentary on the subject aired in 1974. Thousands of private investors lost their life savings, since at

3080-451: Was sold to Helios Investment Partners . On 28 July 2024, Crown Agents was reported to be on the verge of collapse. Crown Agents was placed into insolvency on the 1 August 2024, largely due to cuts in funding from the UK Government and cost reduction efforts in the Foreign & Commonwealth Office. An additional contributing factor that management mentioned was the ongoing cost of funding a pension liability. The company provided support for

3136-413: Was the estimate that losses would exceed £200m. The Fay report gives extensive detail on the Crown Agent's activities. It was a body without effective supervision in which inexperienced officers engaged in a wide range of speculative banking and property developments on a worldwide basis. “It is manifest from the minutes of the committee that during the period from 1967 to 1974 the conduct of the affairs of

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