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| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Brothers' company in difficulties | Brothers' company in difficulties |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Two Londonderry brothers with a £500m commercial property business have had 30 of their 75 companies placed into administration. | Two Londonderry brothers with a £500m commercial property business have had 30 of their 75 companies placed into administration. |
| Patrick and Hugh Hegarty own the W G Mitchell business. | Patrick and Hugh Hegarty own the W G Mitchell business. |
| W G Mitchell owns properties in Northern Ireland, Scotland and England which are leased to third parties. | W G Mitchell owns properties in Northern Ireland, Scotland and England which are leased to third parties. |
| Ernst & Young, who have been appointed as the administrators, said the companies had been operating in a challenging market place. | Ernst & Young, who have been appointed as the administrators, said the companies had been operating in a challenging market place. |
| "They have been finding it increasingly difficult to meet the significant backlog of creditors as well as ongoing debt service obligations. | "They have been finding it increasingly difficult to meet the significant backlog of creditors as well as ongoing debt service obligations. |
| "The business model under which the companies have been operating was becoming unsustainable." | "The business model under which the companies have been operating was becoming unsustainable." |
| Ernst & Young said it would continue to operate the companies whilst considering options for selling them. | Ernst & Young said it would continue to operate the companies whilst considering options for selling them. |
| Part of the W G Mitchell portfolio includes the 200,000 sq ft Richmond shopping centre in Londonderry which is leased to another company. | Part of the W G Mitchell portfolio includes the 200,000 sq ft Richmond shopping centre in Londonderry which is leased to another company. |
| Trading at the the shopping centre will continue as normal. | Trading at the the shopping centre will continue as normal. |
| The 30 W G Mitchell companies in administration also own two hotels in Edinburgh's Grassmarket, which they bought for £54m in October 2006 and leased back to Apex hotels. | The 30 W G Mitchell companies in administration also own two hotels in Edinburgh's Grassmarket, which they bought for £54m in October 2006 and leased back to Apex hotels. |
| The portfolio also includes property in Charlotte Square and George Street in Edinburgh and developments in Glasgow, Perth and Fraserburgh in Aberdeenshire. | |
| The Hegarty family began investing in property in Northern Ireland in the 1960s. | The Hegarty family began investing in property in Northern Ireland in the 1960s. |
| Their W G Mitchell company moved into the Scottish market in the late 1990s developing a focus on hotels. | Their W G Mitchell company moved into the Scottish market in the late 1990s developing a focus on hotels. |
| At the end of 2008 the company was attempting to raise money through the sale of two of its hotels. | |
| The Bonnington in London was put on the market less than a year after W G Mitchell bought it from Irish hotelier Jim McGettigan for about £70m. Its Radisson hotel in Edinburgh was also up for sale. | |
| Last year's Sunday Times rich list estimated that Patrick Hegarty and his family had a fortune of £40m. |