Asda owners insist chain had no ‘strategy’ to profit from higher fuel prices

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. For the record, there is no hole in the accounts, it is purely accounting standards which can be confusing Gary Lindsay, TDR Capital's managing partner Gary Lindsay, the managing director of TDR, said: “There wasn’t a particular strategy to bump the price of fuel or to make a larger profit on fuel.” He also shrugged off the “notion that we were moving profit around between fuel and food”, insisting: “We are incredibly competitive when it comes to price across the business.” The remarks were in relation to a probe by the Competition and Markets Authority which last year found that Asda’s fuel margin target was more than three times their 2019 level by 2023, after it looked into concerns over profiteering on fuel. Asda last year said it had started displaying live fuel prices online, following pressure from the watchdog and the Government. I do understand that to see a number of companies and to see them located in certain areas raises some question, but I want to be extremely clear with the committee that Asda is extremely transparent Emma Gilks, deputy general counsel for TDR Capital Meanwhile, Asda bosses were questioned over its use of holding companies based in Jersey, and whether it creates “major distrust” between Asda staff and management. Mr Lindsay said: “For the record, there is no hole in the accounts, it is purely accounting standards which can be confusing.” Emma Gilks, deputy general counsel for TDR, said: “I do understand that to see a number of companies and to see them located in certain areas raises some question, but I want to be extremely clear with the committee that Asda is extremely transparent.” Labour MP Liam Byrne responded that it is “rather stretching” to describe the company as “extremely transparent”.