Guardian Article On Torquay

[Gullscorer]

Your right Tomo, as is Michael Golbourne. A business can split into more than one entity, as a form of self-protection. For example, a hotel business can be run by two companies, one holding the actual building, which the other company (the hotel business) rents from the first (the 'property' business). If the hotel business fails, then at least the actual building is safe. Of course, complications can arise if the same person is a director of both sides of the business and is required to act as a personal guarantor for any loans taken out.

The danger for a similar arrangement at a football club is where the company owning the stadium charges an unduly high rent to the club, causing the club to fold, or if the same company owns club and stadium and withholds sufficient investment in the club, again causing the club to fold, so allowing the company free reign with its property development plans. At the same time, any other investors or creditors would be in danger of losing their money, as happened at Plymouth in recent memory.

How long Osborne and G.I. keep the club running will depend on how much they are willing to invest in the football. Today's crowd indicates the potential for financial success if we achieve a promotion or two. Needless to say, we'll all be watching Osborne and G.I. like hawks.

[Southampton Gull]

The Herald are definitely complicit in the deal for Plainmoor. Unfortunately my information is GI already have the deal done.

[Uberwozza-san]

anyone know what are mayors contact details for all TUFC fans to use?

[Louis]

anyone know what are mayors contact details for all TUFC fans to use?

Lifted from another thread:

Just to add if you want to email Kevin Mowat, the Mayor and all the Councillors all at once then you can copy then paste the below into your 'To' bar on your email and it should let you do this in one go:
[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];james.o'[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected];[email protected]

[Plymouth Gull]

The Herald are definitely complicit in the deal for Plainmoor. Unfortunately my information is GI already have the deal done.

As in..the freehold?

[Southampton Gull]

Yes, Nick.

[merse btpir]

The Herald are definitely complicit in the deal for Plainmoor. Unfortunately my information is GI already have the deal done.

That's why they were censorial over the story of Zenith's allegations about the conduct of Dave Phillips & Co when it was given to them by BTPIR

Despite being sent full transcripts outlining their claim that the major stakeholders in the club had been denied by the directors failing to act in the better interest of the company but giving priority to their own shareholdings by 'doing a deal' with GI; Richard Hughes sat on his hands with his lips sealed and revealed nothing. These were allegations that should have been investigated and both sides of the story ~ as the HE are now championing re the Guardian storm ~ made public; but of course with Dave Thomas reduced to being a notice board for Torquay United these days, they kept schtumm.

You'll never get democracy and a free press in Torbay in these circumstances and it is much more than the local football club's supporters being ripped off; it's corrupting and influencing local government decision making which is supposed to be made in the interest of the citizen; not big business or a particular political party.

Ref: http://thelondonlabia.proboards.com/thr ... p?q=zenith

Club Ownership thread dated 4 Jan @ 11.59am
message to the Herald Express.......
"Something smells fishy in Torquay"
so lift this veil of secrecy!

[merse btpir]

kitrobin said to regular club/GI apologist alpinejoe:
think you miss the point though, perhaps deliberately. It is indeed "guesswork" in that we of course cannot independently test the veracity of Zenith's claims. However the wider point is that they HAVE made these claims, have forwarded them to a journalist, and then... nothing. Yes, it may be a difference of opinion, but if I had received these claims I would be ringing up Mr Phillips from my newspaper office and putting those differing opinions to him. Perhaps he will debunk them as garbage. Perhaps more information would come out because of it. But of course the point is that no one with the ability to get an official response is actually doing it.

To which I answered:

That's absolutely the point Chris.......this has been given to us simultaneously with the Herald Express and this my challenge to them to do what nearly every United fan who cares about their club so much wants; and that is to get off their arses and actually do some realistic journalism on this subject instead of sitting there idly and chatting about days gone by and munching biscuits every fecking Thursday!

Every opportunity that passes where messrs Thomas, Hughes and Henderson glibly ignore the very salient points of the day is another day when the stench of a cover up grows stronger. Come on guys grow some and get into 'em!

Footnote: 'Mister Phillips' is en route to Australia as we speak

[torregull]

The Herald are definitely complicit in the deal for Plainmoor. Unfortunately my information is GI already have the deal done.

How can a deal be done if it's subject to the democratic process? That would infer that the Mayor is going to take the decision alone and not refer to full council;highly unlikely in my opinion.There will de a decision in July but at the moment my bet would be on the Council retaining the freehold,with GI told to come back when they've got some proper proposals for a new ground,or with plans to develop Plainmoor and it's facilities whilst remaining as leaseholders.

[merse btpir]

But the Mayor is legally entitled to make an executive decision isn't he!

Ironically really that Gordon Oliver will be the last such executive Mayor of Torbay and has himself championed a return to the former arrangement when this was not so.

The residents of Torbay voted in a referendum to decide whether they should have an Elected Mayor in 2005. This resulted in a ‘yes’ vote for Torbay’s first Elected Mayor on 20th October 2005. Gordon Oliver is now Torbay's Elected Mayor and was elected on 6th May 2011 and re-elected for a second term on 8th May 2015.

Following a Governance Referendum in May 2016, Torbay’s electors voted to change the governance arrangements from a Mayor and Cabinet to a Leader and Cabinet.  Therefore Torbay Council will only have an elected Mayor up until May 2019, after this time one of the 36 Councillors will be appointed by the Council to be the Leader of the Council.

The elected Mayor has responsibility for giving direction to the council and managing the delivery of its services. He has significant decision-making powers and is the main representative for Torbay. The Mayor is elected by everyone in Torbay. He leads the council of 36 councillors, who are elected to represent particular areas known as wards. The Mayor can choose an executive of between 2 and 9 councillors to serve on a cabinet and they are responsible for the day-to-day running of the council. The Mayor is not a councillor.

The Mayor decides which decisions he should make within the overall policies of the council and which decisions the cabinet will make, either collectively or as individual members of the cabinet. The Mayor proposes a budget and policies for the council's approval. If the council rejects these or tries to change them, the Mayor is entitled to resubmit them, at which point they can only be rejected if two thirds of the council votes against them.

We can only hope that on this subject, the Mayor decides either to retain the freehold or allow the council to make the decision. The pressure must be to encourage him to allow the council to make it due to the 'intense public interest and scrutiny'

[Chris B]

The Herald are definitely complicit in the deal for Plaunmoor. Unfortunately my information is GI already have the deal done.

If this is the case, and I have no reason to doubt it, what hope do we have left? Will the attention and coverage from the Guardian and Telegraph articles end up amounting to little more than obituaries for the club?

Simply scandalous that the Herald Express continues to offer nothing on the subject. This is Torbay's biggest news story and should be front page news as well as back.

[Louis]

So we have a general election on 8th June now. Can we get Adrian back in for the bay and championing this fight?

[Southampton Gull]

I think the battle is already swayed in GI's favour and history says they'll get their way so I'm not sure what can be done apart from kicking up enough of a shit storm to pressure people into reconsidering but from what I'm told it's already too late.

I don't know for sure but this is most likely the reason the HE has effectively gone missing.

[Neal]

I think the battle is already swayed in GI's favour and history says they'll get their way so I'm not sure what can be done apart from kicking up enough of a shit storm to pressure people into reconsidering but from what I'm told it's already too late.

I don't know for sure but this is most likely the reason the HE has effectively gone missing.

yes they have probably weighed it all up and thought lets go with the winner as they will still want to have some relationship with them.

but you know what also p*sses me off, MANY OF YOU ON HERE!

There was a handful of posters and it was just a few who were anti GI right from the start, before they took over, and the crap and excuses that many of you posted during that time. Now, all on board when its probably too bloody late.

Hope your pleased with yourselves!!

[Gullscorer]

Can a local referendum be called on this issue? How many local voters are required for such a referendum to be triggered ?
Perhaps TUST could organise it?