Examiner appointed to Homebase

The High Court has appointed an interim examiner to the firm operating 15 Irish Homebase home and garden stores, which employs 558 people, including 444 working part-time.

It is anticipated that three stores — in Carlow, Castlebar, and Fonthill Rd, Clondalkin, Dublin, — may close under restructuring proposals, with the loss of 96 jobs.

Mr Justice Brian McGovern appointed Kieran Wallace of KPMG as interim examiner to Homebase House & Garden Centre Ltd, the Irish arm of the UK Home Retail Group, incorporating the Homebase and Argos brands, which has remained profitable as a whole. He returned the petition for confirmation of Mr Wallace as examiner to Jul 26.