商业大臣乔纳森·雷诺兹已会见总部位于美国的 Poundland 所有者，政府希望挽救这家零售商免于倒闭。
Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds has met the US-based owners of Poundland as the government hopes to save the retailer from collapse.
这家折扣连锁店濒临破产，而以 1 英镑价格于去年 6 月收购它的 Gordon Brothers 已拒绝了一项本可挽救目前 1.2 万个岗位的收购要约。
The discount chain is on the brink of insolvency and Gordon Brothers, which bought it for £1 last June, has rejected a takeover bid which could have saved the 12,000 jobs currently at risk.
原定于周四举行会议，但因争取该公司救援协议的努力加紧而提前召开。
A meeting was due to be held on Thursday but has been brought forward as the scramble to secure a rescue deal for the firm intensifies.
Gordon Brothers 此前表示，Poundland 面临通胀上升、员工成本增加以及“严重盗窃”等多重经济挑战。
Gordon Brothers has previously said Poundland faces multiple economic challenges from rising inflation, increasing staff costs, and "severe levels of shoplifting".
雷诺兹和首相安迪·伯纳姆均质疑为何未能就该企业未来达成协议。
Both Reynolds and Prime Minister Andy Burnham have questioned why a deal for the future of the business has not been made.
周三，一位接近商业大臣的消息人士称，雷诺兹“态度坚定，要求 Gordon Brothers 必须竭尽全力保护就业岗位，给工人提供确定性”。
On Wednesday, a source close to business secretary said Reynolds "has been firm that Gordon Brothers must do everything in their power to protect jobs and provide certainty for workers".
消息人士补充道：“他很高兴在会议上获得了 Gordon Brothers 的这一承诺，并将继续督促该公司兑现承诺，密切关注事态发展。”
"He is pleased to have secured this commitment from Gordon Brothers in the meeting and will continue to hold the company to account and closely monitor developments," the source added.
据了解，Gordon Brothers 在会上承诺将优先考虑能保护工人和门店的竞购方案。
It is understood that Gordon Brothers made a commitment in the meeting to prioritise bids that will protect workers and units.
不过，这家美国投资公司是会维持业务完整还是拆分出售，目前仍不清楚。
However, it is still unclear whether the US investment firm will keep the business together or break it up.
与此同时，议员们表示已传唤 Poundland 所有者于 11 月 11 日周三接受质询，解释其在该折扣零售商即将破产中所扮演的角色。
Meanwhile, MPs say they have called in Poundland's owners for questioning on Wednesday 11 November to explain their role in the discount retailer's looming insolvency.
议会商业委员会主席利亚姆·伯恩表示：“所有报告都显示 Poundland 是一家生存能力强、盈利且前景光明的企业，没有正当理由让它倒闭烂尾——然后再将其拆分、逐件出售。”
Liam Byrne, chair of Parliament's business committee, said: "Every report suggests Poundland is a viable, profitable business with a future ahead of it and without good reason to let it crash and burn - and then to break it up and sell it off piece by piece.
“我们要求戈登兄弟公司出席议会听证会，向我们解释清楚，究竟是什么阻碍他们接受摆在桌面上、资金已落实的收购方案，以挽救1.2万多个就业岗位。”商业大臣凯特·迪尔登和工会代表周三会见了Poundland董事总经理巴里·威廉姆斯。
"We are asking Gordon Brothers to appear before Parliament to explain themselves and tell us just what it is that's preventing them from accepting the fully-funded deal on the table to save more than 12,000 jobs." Business Minister Kate Dearden and union representatives met Poundland's managing director Barry Williams on Wednesday.
威廉姆斯告诉BBC，Poundland目前盈利，且销售额正在增长。
Mr Williams told the BBC that Poundland is profitable and sales were growing.
他说：“我们已重回盈利轨道，如果允许其继续发展，前景一片光明。”
"We're back in profit and it has a bright future ahead of it if it's allowed to deliver that," he said.
Poundland已提交委任破产管理人的意向通知，这使其在下周四之前受到债权人保护。
Poundland has filed a notice of intention to appoint administrators, which protects it from its creditors until next Thursday.
被问及对Poundland所有者有何话要说时，伯纳姆表示，戈登兄弟公司应“关注你们雇佣的员工”，并“拿出一个切实可行的方案来保住就业岗位和门店”。他补充道：“这里是有解决办法的，坐下来和我们一起寻找吧。”
Asked what his message for Poundland's owner was, Burnham said Gordon Brothers should "focus on the people in your employment" and "come up with a practical solution that saves jobs and saves those stores". "There is a solution to be found here, sit down with us and let's find it," he added.
此次会晤此前，Poundland的一家主要供应商表示，如果该零售商倒闭，将损失数百万英镑。
The meeting comes after a major Poundland supplier has said it will lose millions of pounds if the retailer goes bust.
总部位于布拉德福德的Highcrest Retail Brands销售总监亚当·特纳表示，Poundland是其最大客户之一，其倒闭将导致该公司损失“数百万英镑”销售额。
Adam Turner, sales director at Bradford-based Highcrest Retail Brands, said Poundland was one of its biggest customers and its collapse would cost it "a few million" in lost sales.
这家家族企业主要向Poundland供应糖果，年营业额约5000万英镑。
The family owned business mainly sells confectionery to Poundland and turns over about £50m.
特纳称，该公司若陷入资不抵债，明年的资产负债表将留下一个巨大缺口。
Turner said the firm becoming insolvent would leave a substantial gap in its balance sheet next year.
特纳表示，Highcrest作为“一家老牌企业，能够承受这一冲击”。但他警告说，其他向该零售商供货的中小供应商已告诉他，“如果Poundland倒闭，他们也完了”。
Highcrest was a "longstanding business that can stomach this", Turner said. But he warned other medium and small suppliers to the retailer have told him that "if Poundland goes under, so do they".
这呼应了Poundland创始人史蒂夫·史密斯周一的警告：两三千家仅为Poundland供货的供应商将直接受到其倒闭的影响。
This echoes a warning from Poundland founder Steve Smith on Monday that two or three thousand suppliers to the firm, which only work for Poundland, would be directly affected by its collapse.
他在周三告诉BBC，届时不仅Poundland的1.2万名员工会受影响，总计可能多达3万人受到波及。
Not only would Poundland's 12,000 staff be affected in that case, but potentially up to 30,000 overall, he told the BBC on Wednesday.
他说，Poundland 被置于破产管理之下令他“惊讶”，并指出该公司具有盈利能力。
He said he was "amazed" Poundland was being put into administration, pointing to the profitability of the company.
他补充道：“此外，桌面上还有两份来自一些非常优秀人士的报价。”
"Also, there's two offers on the table from some really good people," he added.
“我唯一的要求是让 Gordon Brothers 看看能否促成一笔交易。” Gordon Brothers 表示，由于面临的经济问题，总部位于沃尔索尔的 Poundland “仍无法在可持续的基础上产生现金”。
"All I'm asking is for Gordon Brothers to see if they can put a deal together." Gordon Brothers said Walsall-based Poundland is "still not cash generative at a sustainable level" because of the economic issues it faces.
如果 Poundland 的门店卖给新买家，部分员工可能会在原址获得新工作。
If Poundland's stores are sold to new buyers, some of the employees may get new jobs on the same premises.
然而，据了解，目前买家只对大约一半的门店感兴趣——这意味着大约 6000 名员工将无法获得再就业。
However, it is understood that buyers are only interested in about half the stores at present – meaning roughly 6,000 employees would not be re-employed.
他说，如果 Poundland 倒闭，供应商将从破产管理中拿回“每英镑仅几便士”，这“非常令人难过”——尽管他仍希望能达成交易，使 Poundland 保持偿债能力。
If Poundland goes under, suppliers will be getting "pennies in the pound" back from the administration, he said, which is "very upsetting" – although he still hopes a deal can be done so Poundland can remain solvent.
Poundland 的所有者 Gordon Brothers 将成为有担保债权人，这意味着他们排在第一位拿回款项，而“毫无过错”的供应商将承担财务损失。
Poundland owners Gordon Brothers will be a secured creditor, which means they are first in line to get their money back, and suppliers "who have done nothing wrong" will take the financial hit. "It's sad.
“很悲伤。老实说，这对我们所有人来说都是一场噩梦。不仅仅是供应商，还有 Poundland 的员工，其中一些人已经在那里工作了很多年。
It's a nightmare for us all to be honest with you. It's not just the suppliers, it's the staff at Poundland, some of these guys have been there for many years.
“从仓库员工一直到店员，再到总部的每一个人。这对供应链产生了巨大的连锁反应，”他补充道。
"It's from the warehouse staff all the way to the shop staff to everybody within head office. It's a massive ripple effect through the supply chain," he added.
Turner 表示，他不知道 Gordon Brothers 是否故意安排 Poundland 进入破产管理的时机，以便利用其高库存水平并将其出售变现。
Turner said he had no knowledge of whether Gordon Brothers had deliberately timed the process of Poundland going into administration so it could take advantage of having high stock levels, which it can then sell.
Gordon Brothers 赚钱的方式之一是通过库存清算——出售倒闭企业的库存。
One of the ways Gordon Brothers makes money is through stock liquidations – selling off stock from collapsed businesses.
一位熟悉情况的内部人士告诉 BBC，Poundland 面临倒闭的时机“反常”——大多数零售商不会在圣诞节前夕倒闭。
One insider familiar with the situation told the BBC that the timing of Poundland facing collapse was "odd" – most retailers don't fall over in the run-up to Christmas.
德尔登表示，政府不想干预“当前正在进行的商业谈判”，但部长们希望对该零售商的计划有“明确”了解。
Dearden has said the government doesn't want to interfere with "current ongoing commercial negotiations", but that ministers want "clarity" on the plans for the retailer.
她补充说，“本政府完全有权询问企业是否正在尽一切可能保护全国各地的员工和供应商”。
"It's absolutely legitimate for this government to ask the business if they're doing everything they can to protect employees and suppliers up and down the country," she added.
德尔登向议员们表示，如果Poundland倒闭，政府将准备帮助该公司的员工。
Dearden told MPs that the government would be ready to help the company's employees if Poundland collapses.
据报道，戈登兄弟欧洲业务负责人向政府表示，该公司坚持其管理职责，并自2025年收购以来已向Poundland提供了8500万英镑的追加融资。
The head of Gordon Brothers' European operations reportedly told the government that the firm stood by its stewardship and had given Poundland £85m in additional financing since its purchase in 2025.
