Burgon: It's quality not quantity http://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/leeds-united-news?articleid=3014051&articlepage=1
By Phil Hay YORKSHIRE MP Colin Burgon today questioned the handling of the sale of Leeds United after a desperate attempt by administrators KPMG to resolve the crisis at Elland Road. United were placed back on the market on Friday evening following KPMG's failure to avert a legal challenge from Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs over the controversial resale of the club to chairman Ken Bates. The drastic step was taken after a High Court judge, Mr Justice Patten, set September 3 as the date for HMRC's appeal, three weeks after the start of the 2007-08 League One season. KPMG's decision to invite new bids is seen as a last-ditch bid to settle the fight for control of Elland Road, and to avert the possibility that United will be unable to start the new campaign. A spokesman for the administrators said: "We are putting the club up for sale, and we are interested in talking to other parties. "This is because of the uncertainty that surrounds the club due to the legal challenge by HM Revenue and Customs." But Burgon, the Member of Parliament for Elmet, has criticised the timetable laid down by KPMG, who set 5pm tonight as the deadline for prospective owners to submit their offers despite opening the bidding late on Friday night. One interested party described the strict timescale as "appalling", insisting his consortium had struggled to obtain the documentation needed to gauge the size of their bid. There are also concerns over the Football League's reaction to the sale of a club in administration without an approved Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA). The League would require any consortium taking charge of Leeds to produce a CVA – unless exceptional circumstances exist – before the club's golden share is transferred to a new company. Doubts over the League's willingness to complete the transfer without a CVA have left those parties considering bidding for United today wondering whether their multi-million pound investment would ultimately be spent on a worthless business. Simon Franks, whose rescue firm Redbus were expected to submit an offer today, increased the scrutiny on KPMG further by claiming the sale was "prejudicial". Bates is seen by many to be at the head of the race again, and the 75-year-old yesterday threatened to mount legal action if United are placed in the hands of a rival bidder. Burgon, who will raise a number of fresh concerns in a letter to the Football League's compliance unit this week, told the YEP: "I'm writing to them to express my concerns over the incredibly short timetable set down at such a crucial juncture. "I'd like the appropriate authorities to look into the even-handedness of the administrators' approach, and into whether these events give an edge to one particular party. "Given the interest shown by so many parties back in May, when the club was signed over to Ken Bates a matter of hours after the club went into administration, this process is very difficult for outsiders to understand. "It seemed to many people that the original deal to sell the club to Mr Bates was agreed with undue haste when there were other potential bidders interested in buying the club. "The club was put up for sale by KPMG on Friday evening, and business effectively shuts down on Saturday and Sunday. It certainly doesn't operate as it should. "That gives interested parties only one business day to decided whether they are willing to submit a bid worth millions of pounds. In my opinion, that can't be justified. "What I can say is that if this scenario produces an unsatisfactory outcome, you can be sure that there will be an investigation into the way the process was handled." KPMG claimed that the original deal to sell United back to Bates and Leeds United Football Club Limited had been agreed because of the consortium's willingness to fund operating costs while the club remained in administration. But Redbus chairman Franks claimed last week that his firm were willing to meet short-term expenses provided their offer to take control of the Elland Road club was accepted by KPMG, and other bidders are likely to have provided similar guarantees. Burgon's letter to the Football League will also ask the authorities to secure a guarantee over money paid by supporters to Leeds for season tickets for the 2007-08 campaign. The issue has caused increasing concern among fans, although United moved last week to provide reassurance by insisting the cash had been ring-fenced and would be repaid to supporters were the club unable to begin the new term. But Burgon said: "It's my duty as a public representative to ensure that any money paid by the fans is protected. "Leeds United have provided assurances but we recently received information about the whereabouts of season ticket money from Bates and KPMG, who seemed to contradict each other. "I'd like to see the authorities look at this and make sure that cast-iron guarantees are in place to protect this money from every eventuality. "I'll be raising this issue with the compliance unit. "I also hope that both KPMG and the Football League will consider not only the size of the bids made today, but also the quality of the bids. "It's important to assess the individuals involved and to select the person or people with the best track-record of running a football club. "Personally, I hope this sale will break the stranglehold that Ken Bates has on Leeds United, and that by tonight we will have new owners with qualities which clearly show their commitment to taking the club forward in years to come." _______________________________________________ the Leeds List is an unmoderated mailing list and the list administrators accept no liability for the personal views and opinions of contributors. Leedslist mailing list [email protected] http://list.zetnet.co.uk/mailman/listinfo/leedslist Join The Leeds United Supporters Trust at www.lufctrust.org
