Ex-Wilko boss defends £77m division from store collapse

The Wilko founder’s granddaughter has defended the company’s multi-million dollar dividend payouts ahead of its collapse.

Lisa Wilkinson, who helped run her family’s discount retail empire for 20 years, has dismissed criticism of the £77million paid out to former shareholders, The Mail on Sunday was first reported.

The payments were made over the past decade, including years when the company was making losses.

She told the Sunday Times: “The board checked … there was enough cash, we had the right governance in place, the auditors checked it.” Wilkinson added: “Is there a part of me lying up at night saying I wish we would never have taken a penny out of dividends?”

“It might have allowed us to survive a few months longer.” “What we took out really wouldn’t have made a difference.”

Layoff?: 12,000 employees are on the brink of unemployment and the company has a £50m black hole in its pension fund

But the payouts have sparked outrage from unions, as 12,000 workers are on the brink of unemployment and there is a £50m black hole in the company’s pension pot.

Private equity firm M2 Capital made a last-minute £90million offer for Wilko over the weekend, pledging to keep all jobs for two years.