THE boss of MG Rover, John Towers, says he does not welcome a Government inquiry into the accounts of the stricken car maker.

Mr Towers, head of Phoenix Venture Holdings, has described claims of financial irregularities as "ridiculous", pointing out that the business has been subject to an annual audit by Deloitte & Touche as well as being examined by a Trade and Industry Select Committee.

But if Mr Towers does not have any qualms about the way the company was run, or any misgivings about how much the four directors of Phoenix took out of the business, he should have nothing to fear from Sir Bryan Nicholson's inquiry.

It is, of course, nothing new for the bosses of failed companies to fare very well despite disastrous performances. History is littered with fat cats who have been paid extremely well for failure.

Businessmen who take great risks deserve the rewards their courage brings. But that has not been the case in this instance. The Phoenix directors did not take a big risk, the company has failed under their management, and there are widespread concerns that they took too much money out of an ailing business.

So despite Mr Towers' unsurprising misgivings, a swift but thorough inquiry is essential, not least because the collapse has happened in the middle of an election campaign which has ensured an even greater level of public interest in the loss of 5,000 jobs.

We await the results with interest and hope that Mr Towers' confidence in his management of MG Rover proves to be justified.