Secret Millionaire's property firm evicts 60 small businesses

SCORES of small businesses have been forced to find new office space after a company headed by Secret Millionaire Paul Williams gave them three weeks' notice to quit.

MLS Group, Britain's second biggest operator of business centres, has told its clients at two London sites they have until tomorrow to leave the premises as its subsidiary running the sites is about to go into liquidation.

Thirty tenants renting offices above Great Portland Street Tube station and a similar number above Warren Street Tube station have been evicted before the imminent liquidation of MLS Business Centres Management.

Some of the tenants began moving their property out a fortnight ago, fearing they might be locked out. Their tenancy agreement states they should be given two months' notice.

MLS leases the properties from landlords before renting them to businesses. The firms sign contracts with MLS, which handles the running of the offices, looking after shared spaces and providing services such as cleaning. The company admitted 14 centres had been affected. Some of the other sites have been handed back to landlords, and the occupiers allowed to stay.

Although the company has offered tenants alternative premises, many clients have said these are unsuitable.

MLS chief executive Mr Williams appeared on the Channel 4 show Secret Millionaire two years ago. The programme follows wealthy philanthropists going undercover to find deserving causes for their money.

Mr Williams, 51, said to be worth £60million, and his son Ben, 23, travelled to a run-down estate in Middlesbrough for the programme..

MLS Group, which is still trading, says it cannot return the deposits as it is unable to show preference to any of the liquidated subsidiary's creditors. One tenant revealed that the company took a deposit from him in November for extra space, only two months before it was placed into liquidation. MLS Group had warned then that part of its business was likely to fold.

MLS Group said it was forced to place its subsidiary into liquidation because of a drop in demand. Managing director David Plummer said: "It is unfair on our clients, but it reflects the difficult situation we are in."