The move follows a consultation last year into administrations in the UK, which the BPIF sent a detailed response to.

Department of Business Innovation and Skills (BIS) minister Edward Davey said the coalition government did not wish to outlaw pre-pack administrations, but that it had put forward a number of measures to "increase their transparency".

If the proposals go ahead, administrators will have to give notice to creditors if they propose to sell a "significant proportion" of a company's assets or its business to a connected party, without marketing the assets.

According to the BIS, this will enable creditors to express concerns, "which the administrator would need to consider" and apply to the court to prevent the sale.

Other proposals include the administrators' SIP 16 report being included in administration proposals, which are lodged at Companies House, so information is available to be viewed by anyone,

Davey said: "The merits of pre-pack sales have continued to be the subject of much debate. I recognise that such sales offer a flexible and speedy means of rescue and can be the best way of maximising returns for creditors.

"We do not wish to outlaw them, but they must be done fairly and reasonably. Particular concerns have been raised about sales of assets back to the current management, or other connected party, something that is often referred to as 'phoenixism'.

"I want to make sure that creditors have a fair chance to have their voice heard. I also want to enable others to scrutinise such transactions after the event to ensure that deals being struck are fair in the circumstances."

It is unclear what timetable the government has on the proposals, but they are expected to be implemented by the end of the year.