MP VOICES FEARS OF FOREIGN TAKEOVERS
25/06/07 19:14
A row blew up tonight over foreign ownership of football clubs after an MP used Parliamentary privilege to describe Thaksin Shinawatra, the billionaire set to take over Manchester City, as "unsavoury".
Labour MP David Taylor, who represents Leicestershire NW, told sports minister Richard Caborn that the issue of foreign takeovers needed urgent attention.
He make specific reference to Thaksin, the billionaire former Thailand prime minister among "flaky foreign financiers".
Caborn announced he intended to hold a summit meeting with the Premier League, FA, and Football League on Tuesday but those talks have had to be put on hold after the footballing bodies said they were not available at such short notice.
Taylor told the House of Commons: "The Stevens inquiry into corruption has shrunk to investigating just 17 transfer deals whilst wide concerns about the vulnerability of clubs to takeover by international moguls and politicians remain unaddressed.
"
Will you say what protections, for instance, the Manchester City supporters have against the attentions of the unsavoury Thaksin Shinawatra or is it forever the fate of football fans to be fleeced by flaky foreign financiers?"
Shinawatra has been charged with offences of corruption in Thailand and has had his assets in that country frozen. He claims the charges are a politically-motivated move by the military junta that deposed him.
Caborn replied to Taylor that he wanted to avoid the top flight becoming "a billionaire's playground" and intended to meet the football bodies.
However, Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore and the chiefs of the FA and Football League could not agree a mutually-acceptable time to meet due to prior engagements.
Caborn said: "I think the commercialisation, indeed foreign investment, has actually helped the Premier League.
"It is the best in the world, watched by 1.5 billion people around the world every weekend.
"But I think we have got to make sure the Premier League does not turn into a billionaires' playground.
"I think we have got to make sure that the grass roots, the communities from which those clubs came indeed are respected."
Caborn also wanted the talks to investigate the effectiveness of the 'fit and proper person test' for club owners and directors currently used by the leagues and the FA.
If and when Thaksin's takeover is completed it will mean six out of 20 Premier League clubs are in foreign hands, with a number of others including Arsenal and Blackburn provoking interest from overseas.
The Premier League have always insisted they have no issue with the nationality of club owners and said were no plans for Scudamore to attend a meeting.
A Premier League spokesman said in a statement: "We have no plans to meet with Mr Caborn at present. However, we are happy to discuss the legal framework currently offered by Government in relation to takeovers and mergers of UK companies, how this relates to the ownership of football clubs and how best to access information relevant Government departments have that may help us in regard to any regulatory issues concerning any proposed takeovers.
"Our own 'fit and proper persons test' sits on top of this regime as an additional layer of regulation.
"As always the Premier League is happy to work across Government with whoever the appropriate ministers may be in the coming weeks."
http://www.football365.com/story/0,17033,8691_2448203,00.html
