Feltex chief: We didn't hide details

Former Feltex chief executive and director Peter Thomas. Photo / Richard Robinson

Peter Thomas, Feltex's former chief executive and director, said neither he nor any of the other directors hid details or avoided telling the truth about the company to ensure market confidence, the Auckland District Court heard yesterday.

Feltex's directors are defending allegations the company's half-year accounts to December 31, 2005, did not disclose it was in breach of its loan agreement with ANZ.

The directors, Tim Saunders, Peter Thomas, John Feeney, John Hagen and Peter David Hunter, have pleaded not guilty.

The accounts did not include that the company was in breach of its loan agreement and that its debt was current, meaning it was on call.

The directors claim at the time the interim financial statements were prepared, they believed the accounts met the relevant compliance standards.

Ernst & Young conducted a review to ensure the financial statements met the requirements under the newly-adopted international financial reporting standards, Thomas said.

He said he was assured by the accounting firm the accounts were compliant, and because Ernst & Young had an international reputation and had been the company's auditors for six years, he had no reason to doubt its professional opinion.

Prosecutor Brian Dickey asked Thomas whether it was okay for the directors to "do a bad job" because Ernst & Young had - by not properly disclosing Feltex's financial details.

Thomas said he did not expect Ernst & Young to do a bad job and he, and the other directors, were determined to ensure all the details of the accounts were correct.

The case continues.