Coinmaker sues Treasury for £5.4m

A BITTER legal battle has erupted between the Treasury and the Birmingham Mint, resulting in the privately-owned coin maker suing the Government for more than £5m.

Birmingham Mint is claiming in the High Court that the Treasury is legally obliged to pass on to Birmingham Mint one-third of all orders it receives for UK coins from outside Europe.

Birmingham says the commitment is part of an open-ended contract between it and the Treasury-owned Royal Mint, which also produces the coins at its factory in Wales. The coins at the heart of the battle include those used for currency exchange outside Europe as well as a range of precious metal and collectors' coins.

The £5.4m being claimed compares with Birmingham Mint's total turnover for 2001 of just over £20m. The company, the subject of a management buyout from engineering group IMI four years ago, has 180 staff. However, Royal Mint made a £683,000 loss last year from turnover of £96m. A Treasury spokesman said the action would be defended.

Much of the court case is expected to focus on whether the contract was enforceable and on the total size of the orders received by the Treasury from outside Europe.