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To: maceng2 who wrote (84)	10/17/2002 4:51:19 AM
From: maceng2	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1417

Royal Mint posts record loss news.bbc.co.uk The Royal Mint reported a £6.5m trading loss last year The Royal Mint has reported its biggest ever financial loss. A fall-off in orders from foreign governments, as well as redundancy costs, contributed to a £6.5m trading loss last year, the National Audit Office reported on Thursday. The spending watchdog also revealed that it took eight months before the Mint noticed someone had stolen £25,000 from one its safes. The theft occurred last year at the Mint's high security plant in Llantrisant, south Wales. The government must accept the seriousness of the situation at the Royal Mint and get to grips with the problems Shadow Chancellor Michael Howard No one has been charged in connection with the theft and an investigation into the incident was wound up in May of this year because of a lack of evidence. The NAO blamed a series of security lapses for the theft, which contributed to the Mint's £6.5m trading loss last year. Security lapse The loss of the notes - totalling £25,680 - was discovered during a stock check on 13 December last year, according to the report. The stolen notes came from a consignment worth £40,000, which were intended to be used in special presentation packs from the Bank of England in October 2000. They were deposited in the safe in the "gold store" of the plant's collector coin division. This section is supposed to be subjected to particularly stringent security controls. The plant is guarded by the Ministry of Defence Police. However, normal access and stock controls were suspended for seven months last year while the section underwent a reorganisation. During that period, internal and external contractors working in the plant had unrestricted access to the area. A MoD Police investigation into the theft was wound up last May because of lack of evidence, although the matter has been left on file. However, the investigation found that neither of the two keys which opened the safe was held securely. In addition, the safe was poorly located away from the supervisor and was generally left open and unattended during the day. The Mint now faces a challenging and painful period of restructuring Sir John Bourn There were no periodic stock checks for almost 11 months between February and December last year and while there were stringent security controls to prevent the taking of coins they were not designed to stop other thefts such as banknotes. The disclosure of the theft is a further blow to the troubled Mint. Losing money It has embarked on a £12m restructuring programme in an attempt to stem its losses. Some 200 staff at the south Wales plant are to lose their jobs as part of that programme, which aims to return the Mint to profit. The Mint has also been the focus of a Serious Fraud Office inquiry over allegations of improper payments and a £5.4 million damages claim from the rival, private-sector Birmingham Mint for breach of contract. Sir John Bourn, head of the NAO, warned it now faced a period of "painful" restructuring. It is the second year in succession that the Mint has recorded a loss. Sir John said: "The Royal Mint's declining financial performance in recent years is largely a consequence of the external pressures of a highly competitive global market. "The Mint now faces a challenging and painful period of restructuring as it seeks to return to overall profitability." The report was seized upon by the Conservative Party. Shadow Chancellor Michael Howard said: "The government must accept the seriousness of the situation at the Royal Mint and get to grips with the problems."