Frederick Barclay faces jail over unpaid divorce bill

Property and publishing mogul Sir Frederick Barclay faces prison, after failing to pay a £50m divorce settlement. Lawyers for Barclay’s estranged spouse, Hiroko, applied to the High Court on Thursday to start the process of having Barclay committed to prison for contempt of court, after he failed to pay the first instalment of a divorce settlement that had been due in August. A date has yet to be set for his committal hearing, which will be held in public early next year. The remaining £50m of the divorce settlement is due to be paid in 2022. Barclay can still avoid contempt proceedings if he pays the sum, or if he demonstrates that he is unable to pay. If he is found to be in contempt of court he could face a fine, asset freeze, or possible imprisonment. Barclay, with his late twin brother David, built a multi-billion-pound business empire spanning property, hotels and Daily Telegraph newspaper. The FT (£) The Guardian Daily Mail To send feedback, e-mail piers.wehner@eg.co.uk or tweet @PiersWehner or @EGPropertyNews