Financial Statements

• Overview
• Statements
• Operating & Financial Review
• Corporate Responsibility
• Portfolio Highlights
• Governance
• Financial Statements
  • Consolidated Income Statement
  • Consolidated Balance Sheet
  • Consolidated Statement of Recognised Income and Expense
  • Consolidated Cash Flow Statement
  • Notes to the accounts
  • Report of the Auditors
  • Company Balance Sheet
  • Ten Year Record
• Financial Calendar
• Shareholder Information
• Download Centre

• Print page
• Email page

• Home
• Financial Statements
• Company Balance Sheet

Prepared in accordance with UK GAAP as at 31 March 2007

Chris Gibson-Smith Chairman

Graham Roberts Finance Director

Approved by the Board on 21 May 2007.

Graham Roberts Finance Director

(a) Accounting policies

Accounting basis

The financial statements are prepared in accordance with applicable United Kingdom law and Accounting Standards (UKGAAP) and under the historical cost convention as modified by the revaluation of investment properties and fixed asset investments.

Except as set out below, the accounting policies applied by the Company are consistent with those applied by the Group, as stated in note 1 of the consolidated financial statements, and have been applied consistently throughout the current and the previous year.

Investments

Investments in joint ventures are stated at cost less provision for impairment. Investments in subsidiaries are stated at cost or directors' valuation less provision for impairment.

Deferred taxation

Deferred tax is not recognised when fixed assets are revalued unless by the balance sheet date there is a binding agreement to sell the revalued assets and the gain or loss expected to arise on the sale has been recognised in the financial statements.

A deferred tax asset is regarded as recoverable and therefore recognised only when, on the basis of all available evidence, it can be regarded as more likely than not that there will be suitable taxable profits from which the future reversal of the underlying timing differences can be deducted.

(b) Dividends

Details of dividends paid and proposed are included in note 21 of the consolidated financial statements.

(c) Company profit for the financial year after tax

The Company has not presented its own profit and loss account as permitted by Section 230 of the Companies Act 1985. The profit after tax for the year was £3,992m (2006: £860m).

The average number of employees of the Company during the year was 192 (2006: 200). Employee costs include wages and salaries of £22m (2006: £25m), social security costs of £3m (2006: £3m) and pension costs of £nil (2006: £12m). Details of the executive directors' remuneration are disclosed in the Remuneration Report.

Audit fees in relation to the Parent Company were £0.5m (2006: £0.5m).

(d) Investments and loans to subsidiaries

Shares in subsidiaries are included at cost or directors' valuation in 1977, 1995, 1997 and 1999 to 2007 inclusive; their historical cost is £21,066m (2006: £7,227m).
The amount of £51m (2006: £26m) includes £34m (2006: £8m) of loans to joint ventures by the Company. The Company has a 50% interest in The Public House Company Limited, which is registered and operates in England and Wales.
Results of the joint ventures are set out in note 11 of the consolidated financial statements.
The historical cost of other investments is £12m (2006: £14m).

The principal subsidiaries, which are wholly owned, and except where stated are registered and operate in England and Wales are:

* Direct subsidiaries of the Company.

¹ Principal and interest on these borrowings were fully hedged into Sterling at the time of issue.

(f) Pension

The Company's pension scheme is the principal pension scheme of the Group and details are set out in note 9 of the consolidated financial statements.

(g) Debtors

(h) Creditors

* Includes contracted cash flow with a maturity greater than one year at fair value.

(i) Provision for liabilities

(j) Share capital
The authorised share capital, being 25p ordinary shares, was 800,000,000 at 31 March 2007 (2006: 800,000,000).

Details of outstanding share options, restricted and performance shares awarded to employees including executive directors are given in notes 8 and 20 of the consolidated financial statements.

(k) Share capital and reserves

(l) Contingent liabilities, capital commitments and related party transactions

At 31 March 2007, the Company had no contingent liabilities for guarantees to third parties (2006: £nil). The Company also had no capital commitments (2006: £nil).

The Company has used the exemption under FRS 8 where disclosure is not required of transactions with fellow subsidiary undertakings 90% or more of whose voting rights are controlled within the Group.

Related party transactions are the same for the Company as for the Group. For details refer to note 25 of the consolidated financial statements.

Report of the Auditors

Independent Auditors' Report to the Members of The British Land Company PLC

We have audited the individual Company financial statements of The British Land Company PLC for the year ended 31 March 2007 which comprise the balance sheet and the related notes a to l. These individual Company financial statements have been prepared under the accounting policies set out therein.

We have reported separately on the Group financial statements of The British Land Company PLC for the year ended 31 March 2007 and on the information in the directors' remuneration report that is described as having been audited.

This report is made solely to the Company's members, as a body, in accordance with section 235 of the Companies Act 1985. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the Company's members those matters we are required to state to them in an auditors' report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the Company and the Company's members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.

Respective responsibilities of directors and auditors

The directors' responsibilities for preparing the annual report and the individual Company financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice) are set out in the statement of directors' responsibilities.

Our responsibility is to audit the individual Company financial statements in accordance with relevant legal and regulatory requirements and International Standards on Auditing (UK and Ireland).

We report to you our opinion as to whether the individual Company financial statements give a true and fair view and whether the individual Company financial statements have been properly prepared in accordance with the Companies Act 1985. We also report to you whether in our opinion the directors' report is consistent with the individual Company financial statements. The information given in the directors' report includes that specific information presented in the operating and financial review that is cross-referred from the business review section of the directors' report.

In addition we report to you if, in our opinion, the Company has not kept proper accounting records, if we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit, or if information specified by law regarding directors' remuneration and other transactions is not disclosed.

We read the other information contained in the Annual Report as described in the contents section and consider whether it is consistent with the audited individual Company financial statements. We consider the implications for our report if we become aware of any apparent misstatements or material inconsistencies with the individual Company financial statements. Our responsibilities do not extend to any further information outside the Annual Report.

Basis of audit opinion

We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK and Ireland) issued by the Auditing Practices Board. An audit includes examination, on a test basis, of evidence relevant to the amounts and disclosures in the individual Company financial statements. It also includes an assessment of the significant estimates and judgements made by the directors in the preparation of the individual Company financial statements, and of whether the accounting policies are appropriate to the Company's circumstances, consistently applied and adequately disclosed.

We planned and performed our audit so as to obtain all the information and explanations which we considered necessary in order to provide us with sufficient evidence to give reasonable assurance that the individual Company financial statements are free from material misstatement, whether caused by fraud or other irregularity or error. In forming our opinion we also evaluated the overall adequacy of the presentation of information in the individual Company financial statements.

Opinion

In our opinion:

• the individual Company financial statements give a true and fair view, in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice, of the state of the Company's affairs as at 31 March 2007 and of its profit for the year then ended;
• the individual Company financial have been properly prepared in accordance with the Companies Act 1985; and
• the information given in the directors' report is consistent with the individual Company financial statements.

Deloitte & Touche LLP
Chartered Accountants and Registered Auditors

London
21 May 2007