Geoffrey Robinson and Jim Cunningham have their say... (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Monkeyface
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torchomatic
Well-Known Member
I blame Stuart Linnell.
J
Jack Griffin
Guest
The comments show a distinct anti-SISU/anti-Robinson bias.
Once again the local media sides with sisu.What chance have we got of getting these clowns out.
torchomatic
Well-Known Member
I don't think so. He has always said the Club should own the Ricoh and a charity and council should never own it.
torchomatic
Well-Known Member
So that's Stuart Linnell, the BBC and now the CET who are all against us!
Ooh, I could crush a grape.
Ooh, I could crush a grape.
torchomatic
Well-Known Member
Ah, fair enough. The last time he was on CWR before Xmas he seemed to have changed his tune. Said it was ACL/CCC who should not have anything to do with the Ricoh.
Wonder what could have possibly made him change his mind £££££££
Torchomatic you might want to read this.
Its squeaky bum time for alot of people involved in this, on both sides.Hope the administrator digs deep enough and finds out exactly what a mess were in.
oldskyblue58
CCFC Finance Director
TWO Coventry MPs are demanding Ricoh Arena bosses tell taxpayers the extent of the legal bill for court action against the Sky Blues.
The call comes after the part-council-owned Arena Coventry Limited declined to tell the Telegraph how much had been spent so far in its year-long legal dispute with Coventry City Football Club.
ACL is a private company jointly owned by Coventry City Council and the Alan Edward Higgs Charity, which made £1million profits last year.
But it has effectively been subsidised by council taxpayers since January – after the club refused to pay £1.3m rent for using the stadium. didnt the club stop paying the rent last April, and wasnt the council the conduit for central government money not local taxpayers money ?
The council in private, fearing ACL could be heading for insolvency, unanimously agreed to invest £14m – initially from “council balances” set aside for future council spending. well as the PWLB loan is in place that future spending is still protected isnt it?..... are councils not required to hold reserves by law?...... ccc own 50% of ACl would they not protect their investment?
The £14m bought out ACL’s mortgage, with ACL now paying back the mortgage to the council at much cheaper interest rates.makes good economic sense to do that doesnt it ? assuming that ACL is here to stay and key to CCC
But sources speculate ACL’s legal bill could have already spiralled beyond £1million after this month’s High Court action. and the legal bill for CCFC is ? or do we assume that sISU are picking up that cost out of the goodness of their heart?
Jim Cunningham (Labour, Coventry South) said: “As council taxpayers’ money is involved, they should tell us the legal costs, which are ongoing.” at some point they possibly should and will (it will be disclosed in the next accounts )but in the middle of the current crisis why and what end? I wouldnt expect SISU to
Geoffrey Robinson (Labour, Coventry North West), a former Sky Blues chairman who wrote off £20millon of personal money when current Sky Blues owners Sisu took over in 2007, said: “ACL, the council and the charity are wasting money on an unnecessary load of legal battles.clearly they think GR is wrong in his assessment.... they may of course be right
“They should be transparent about the costs and why they have done this. Where’s it going to end? Sorry but this is coming from GR isnt it ? Do we actually know how much GR has lost ? Do we know the deal the club did with Richardson for instance ? Do we know the details of the reasons why ever got SISU here, do we know why the deal was done rather than let CCFC go into admin in 2007 then be acquired/ ..... sorry but as part of a regime that got us to the brink in 2007 then smacks of pot calling kettle. BTW Do we know who guaranteed the Escrow account?
“The way to solve it is to get the charity out and make a new start with Sisu.” how does that solve it?
ACL wants a takeover of the club by a business it would be happy to also see invest in the stadium. Sisu has been fighting ACL’s legal attempts to force a club takeover.
Conservative opposition councillor John Blundell said he was not aware of the “inevitably expensive” High Court legal costs, but added: “The legal costs, if reasonable, are justified if this results in clarity (a club takeover), working with somebody with the football club and the city at heart. I think Sisu have lost everybody’s trust.” would seem the ccc and its opposition see things similarly
With Coventry City Football Club Ltd now in voluntary administration and CCFC (Holdings) Ltd still owned by Sisu, the Telegraph asked for a breakdown of ACL’s legal bills. did they ask the same of ccfc which is afterall the important entity to its fans ?
An ACL statement said: “This is commercially confidential information” and “ACL has made provisions for legal costs”.
It added: “ACL is an independent business. It is funding this action from its own financial resources.”
Not saying they shouldnt ask ........... not saying they should get a reply clearly both sides have used the commercial confidentiality card ....... but keep it balanced ask both sides, yes taxpayers want to know but the fans also want to know what the club are being saddled with in this dispute.
I would bet SISU wouldnt answer either........ so the point of this article is?
The call comes after the part-council-owned Arena Coventry Limited declined to tell the Telegraph how much had been spent so far in its year-long legal dispute with Coventry City Football Club.
ACL is a private company jointly owned by Coventry City Council and the Alan Edward Higgs Charity, which made £1million profits last year.
But it has effectively been subsidised by council taxpayers since January – after the club refused to pay £1.3m rent for using the stadium. didnt the club stop paying the rent last April, and wasnt the council the conduit for central government money not local taxpayers money ?
The council in private, fearing ACL could be heading for insolvency, unanimously agreed to invest £14m – initially from “council balances” set aside for future council spending. well as the PWLB loan is in place that future spending is still protected isnt it?..... are councils not required to hold reserves by law?...... ccc own 50% of ACl would they not protect their investment?
The £14m bought out ACL’s mortgage, with ACL now paying back the mortgage to the council at much cheaper interest rates.makes good economic sense to do that doesnt it ? assuming that ACL is here to stay and key to CCC
But sources speculate ACL’s legal bill could have already spiralled beyond £1million after this month’s High Court action. and the legal bill for CCFC is ? or do we assume that sISU are picking up that cost out of the goodness of their heart?
Jim Cunningham (Labour, Coventry South) said: “As council taxpayers’ money is involved, they should tell us the legal costs, which are ongoing.” at some point they possibly should and will (it will be disclosed in the next accounts )but in the middle of the current crisis why and what end? I wouldnt expect SISU to
Geoffrey Robinson (Labour, Coventry North West), a former Sky Blues chairman who wrote off £20millon of personal money when current Sky Blues owners Sisu took over in 2007, said: “ACL, the council and the charity are wasting money on an unnecessary load of legal battles.clearly they think GR is wrong in his assessment.... they may of course be right
“They should be transparent about the costs and why they have done this. Where’s it going to end? Sorry but this is coming from GR isnt it ? Do we actually know how much GR has lost ? Do we know the deal the club did with Richardson for instance ? Do we know the details of the reasons why ever got SISU here, do we know why the deal was done rather than let CCFC go into admin in 2007 then be acquired/ ..... sorry but as part of a regime that got us to the brink in 2007 then smacks of pot calling kettle. BTW Do we know who guaranteed the Escrow account?
“The way to solve it is to get the charity out and make a new start with Sisu.” how does that solve it?
ACL wants a takeover of the club by a business it would be happy to also see invest in the stadium. Sisu has been fighting ACL’s legal attempts to force a club takeover.
Conservative opposition councillor John Blundell said he was not aware of the “inevitably expensive” High Court legal costs, but added: “The legal costs, if reasonable, are justified if this results in clarity (a club takeover), working with somebody with the football club and the city at heart. I think Sisu have lost everybody’s trust.” would seem the ccc and its opposition see things similarly
With Coventry City Football Club Ltd now in voluntary administration and CCFC (Holdings) Ltd still owned by Sisu, the Telegraph asked for a breakdown of ACL’s legal bills. did they ask the same of ccfc which is afterall the important entity to its fans ?
An ACL statement said: “This is commercially confidential information” and “ACL has made provisions for legal costs”.
It added: “ACL is an independent business. It is funding this action from its own financial resources.”
Not saying they shouldnt ask ........... not saying they should get a reply clearly both sides have used the commercial confidentiality card ....... but keep it balanced ask both sides, yes taxpayers want to know but the fans also want to know what the club are being saddled with in this dispute.
I would bet SISU wouldnt answer either........ so the point of this article is?
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torchomatic
Well-Known Member
Nice one, OSB. However, isn't there a gagging order on details of the dreaded "Richardson Years"? No one is allowed to mention what happened and what actually BR was up to.
GaryPendrysEyes
Well-Known Member
Wonder how much the club £60m in debt has wasted on legal fees?
BrisbaneBronco
Well-Known Member
Well Lord Mc and Richardson were buddies. Lord Mc was head of Tesco. Richardson made a tidy sum from the sale of land to Tesco. Richardson was probably the only one of the regime at the time who profited from the deal, and the only one who invested buggar all of his own money. All of this is of course allegedly.
Sky Blues
Active Member
Forgive me if I'm wrong, but it appears to me that Geoffrey Robinson is saying Coventry City Council should run up a white flag and hand a £113million stadium with more than £20million of taxpayers' money sunk into it to a private company because that private company won't pay the rent it is legally contracted to pay for use of that stadium?
And who was it that agreed that rental contract again? :thinking about:
lordsummerisle
Well-Known Member
Wonder how many "liked" and agreed with him when this went on SBT?
oldskyblue58
CCFC Finance Director
Apparently Torch, but surely in the need for "Transparency" the fans need to know what went on
:thinking about: ........ it being their club morally. Also where was this £20m that was written off, what was it made up of, how had it been spent, did any of it form a part of the buy in deal with SISU?
Interesting how CT presents the "story" too ....... you would think they would get all the facts right by now wouldn't you ? not just use a few carefully chosen to paint a picture that may not even exist. Wonder how much other influence is behind this story...... what self interests exist if any ?
oldskyblue58
CCFC Finance Director
Geoffrey Robinson media statement about SISU 29th June 2011
“They have made a total mess of it – a disgraceful mess – and they should find a good home for the club as soon as possible, write off their losses – which they are entirely responsible for themselves – and let’s get the club back on the up.
“With this ownership and these people, the club has no future.
"I have grave concerns about the club because the owners have turned out to be an absolute waste of time and space.
“The club and the city deserve better than they have produced.
Surely GR has answered his own question as to one of the reasons why ACL have taken these actions ? Now he wants the Charity out and a new start with SISU? They say memory is the first thing to go dont they ?
“They have made a total mess of it – a disgraceful mess – and they should find a good home for the club as soon as possible, write off their losses – which they are entirely responsible for themselves – and let’s get the club back on the up.
“With this ownership and these people, the club has no future.
"I have grave concerns about the club because the owners have turned out to be an absolute waste of time and space.
“The club and the city deserve better than they have produced.
Surely GR has answered his own question as to one of the reasons why ACL have taken these actions ? Now he wants the Charity out and a new start with SISU? They say memory is the first thing to go dont they ?
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Wrenstreetcarpark
New Member
well he might just have another reason to be interested:
http://www.coventrytelegraph.net/co...lose-250k-in-stadium-rent-row-92746-32625970/
http://www.coventrytelegraph.net/co...lose-250k-in-stadium-rent-row-92746-32625970/
oldskyblue58
CCFC Finance Director
I would assume it is the administrator of CCFCLtd appointed by SISU that has the job to pursue the money due from GR :thinking about: ..... not ACL but I could be wrong
Sky Blues
Active Member
It's nice to know Geoffrey Robinson has confidence in the company he now expects the council to do a deal with...
GaryPendrysEyes
Well-Known Member
How about the Telegraph calling for a 'drains up' report of the financing of the Ricoh Arena-- all parties....
Well done OSB for digging this out.
This was certainly my recollection too.
So, what has changed in the interim??
Anyone care to speculate?
Monkeyface
Well-Known Member
May I point out that the bag of cocaine was found in the back of the police van and NOT on Mr Robinsons person and there was no evidence whatsoever to suggest it ever had been.
oldskyblue58
CCFC Finance Director
to be fair it was tisza who reminded me of the article
rob9872
Well-Known Member
Nobody mentioned any names just an off the cuff non libelous remark from a skint man who us not worth suing
oldskyblue58
CCFC Finance Director
Just thoughts but .....
Where did the notion that a) ACL couldnt afford to do this and b) was using tax payers money to do it come from?
You might think that considering all councillors are unanimous in this that the city's MP's might talk with them and find out rather than use the CT. Surely they are all representing the citizens of Coventry ? Or are there other reasons why they dont talk? (Sick of all the self interest and ego in all this)
ACL are quite entitled to say nothing, just because it doesn't suit the CT or pricks Mr Reids importance is immaterial....... when you look at it reports of ACL in the paper are hardly supportive & often inaccurate so why would they feel like divulging anything to the CT, unless it suits them. It isnt as if SISU have not dodged questions is it?
Would have more sympathy for the CT if I thought the hard questions were being asked by them ...... but they aren't are they
Just how much have CCFC spent on lawyers, barristers, accountants, insolvency experts and administrators ? Who carries that cost?
I get the feeling that this was done to put financial and public pressure on ACL ......... Who gains from that ? What does that say about the media in this City of ours?
I dont want more spin in the papers....... i just want the situation sorted, the back of SISU, and above all our Club safe !
just thoughts and my opinions
Where did the notion that a) ACL couldnt afford to do this and b) was using tax payers money to do it come from?
You might think that considering all councillors are unanimous in this that the city's MP's might talk with them and find out rather than use the CT. Surely they are all representing the citizens of Coventry ? Or are there other reasons why they dont talk? (Sick of all the self interest and ego in all this)
ACL are quite entitled to say nothing, just because it doesn't suit the CT or pricks Mr Reids importance is immaterial....... when you look at it reports of ACL in the paper are hardly supportive & often inaccurate so why would they feel like divulging anything to the CT, unless it suits them. It isnt as if SISU have not dodged questions is it?
Would have more sympathy for the CT if I thought the hard questions were being asked by them ...... but they aren't are they
Just how much have CCFC spent on lawyers, barristers, accountants, insolvency experts and administrators ? Who carries that cost?
I get the feeling that this was done to put financial and public pressure on ACL ......... Who gains from that ? What does that say about the media in this City of ours?
I dont want more spin in the papers....... i just want the situation sorted, the back of SISU, and above all our Club safe !
just thoughts and my opinions
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When GR appeared at the Bob Ainsworth Parliamentary debate I felt then that there was more to this than anybody could realistically be expected to know.
Now, with GR contradicting himself so clearly from his 2011 statement it is clear that something has happened....but what?
You are right - OSB - the CT are abject in their duty to even ask questions....let alone the right ones.
Merely there as a mouthpiece for the manipulative? Who'd have thought it.?:jerkit:
