What and how did blue funell fold up

[j.sabourn]

Hope this allays your feelings of my accusing anyone of breaking the law. I am quite aware that it is legal by the law, whether morally correct or not that is for the individual to answer to his conscience. I would probably do the same if had the chance. However you will probably find the same as most normal people who pay taxes that they are quite disenchanted when they are told that some big multi national company is paying less taxes than them, through off shore accounts and other dodges available to a good accountant. I should imagine most countries who have let this go in the past will now be tightening this up as they are getting short of cash themselves. I found it quite funny really when the Australian Wheat Board was accused of giving bribes to Saddam Hussein, do they not realize that most countries officials and politicians have to be bribed and has always been so. As said in a previous post the gullability of some of our western politicians makes you wonder what sort of I.Q. some of them have. Cheers John Sabourn

[Graham Evans]

This whole Country has been sold down the river by corrupt, self - serving politicians, Blair & Brown spring to mind, together with avaricious, rabble-rousing Union bosses, busy feathering their nests as I write. Bob Crow, one of the worst hypocrites, Chieftain of the RMT is still threatening Rail Strikes, when the Railways are so expensive, nobody can afford to travel on them. Jack Dash, Arthur Scargill, Mick McGahey and all the rest are still out there, brainwashing all the social security scroungers, when it was their Party that imported all the immigrants to shore up their voting base, and put the British Working Man on the scrap heap. When I first went to sea in the year dot, to command a British Ship you had to have a British C.O.C and BE British. Now, a Panama ticket is O.K. and you don't even have to speak English ! Who do we thank for this situation ? - The good old British Government. This week is the anniversary of the Battle of the Atlantic. If we had to rely on Panamanians, Gilbert Islanders or assorted fuzzy wuzzies in those days, we would all be speaking German. British Shipping Companies all collapsed for one reason - corporate greed, nothing else.
When the E.U.Forces decide to invade us to impose the 4th Reich, we may as well surrender right away. We'll have no Navy, all scrapped, the Army - all long sacked, no Air Force, U.S. Aircraft are too expensive, and a population so cowed and disarmed it will be a walk over.
In case you haven't noticed, we have already been occupied by a huge hostile minority, who stand for no criticism, encouraged to colonise our cities by Blairite stooges and who are preparing to impose a medieval system of rule upon us, and whom have colluded with a government junta to remove free speech and all the Liberties we have fought for since King John & the Magna Carta. These islands sit on a vast raft of coal, enough to last hundreds of years, floating on a sea of Natural Gas, yet we are held to ransom by the E.U. Energy Cartels who even own our water supply, and dictate to us how we generate our power requirements, in order to facilitate their persistent attempts to bring us to heel. I have no doubts that the Thought KGB will be banging on my door shortly !

[Tony Wilding]

When North Sea Gas and Oil were found the UK could have had cheap Petrol, Diesel and Gas for heating and cooking, it should never have been sold off, but Goverment owned for the benefit of the UK, There would have been plenty left to sell, and boost the economy, Venezuela sells Petrol and Diesel for there own people at little more than cost price, and exports the rest, but no, greed took over, and we got no benefit, still reliant on Arab Oil and Russian Gas, a golden opportunity to benefit all.. lost.

[Kenneth Kenny]

Hi Terry,I was not in the Shore Gang,they were all great hard working men,was in Box 2 1960s then after are Six Week strike in 1967,went to O.P.S.discharging China boats(ships)plus lots of other company's and Loading,then it finished 1973,went to TJ Harrison's loading all there ships in Canada Dock (alway's Holdsman)they went over to Container's Ships.1980.Then on to the Dock board work with your dad and Howie,and all great docker's until 190s.All the best Terry.Ken.

[Kenneth Kenny]

Hi Terry,the M.D.H.C.the ships we were working on was at Royal Seaforth Dock container ships,Bulk Grain,Timber Ships,lots up to Fifty Thousand Tons.All the great docker's were sack in 1995,they have cheap labour now higher and fire,it's happened's in all firms now.

[Des Taff Jenkins]

Hi John.
The demise of a many shipping companies in the UK was brought about by Britian joining the common market at the expence of the Commanwealth, in particular NZ and Aus. They no longer needed the ships to carry Frozen meat ,Wheat, wool, or all the other products. with the consequence that these countries went elswhere for thier export / imports, like Japan, East Aisia and now China.
My sister told me in her last letter that the UK Govt are building a massive complex in Watford to house one and a half million Rumanians, We in Australia need to take heed of what has happened in the UK and start controling who come into this country, especially in light at what has just happened in London.
Cheers Des.
BritishMN1.jpg

[happy daze john in oz]

Des you are correct, we have yet to feel the full effect as Europe has. But the events of monies being spirted away continues. A mainer declared backrupt owing millions, yet his wife is declared as a billionaire, funny that!
Many years ago we had a 'bottom of the harbour' scheme going on here in Oz. companies haing maoney from the tax man and declaring the company dead. But smarter men that the tax man now exist and each day new, and very often legal ways are found of hiding money away.

[leratty]

Rob, post 20 you are spot on with that sort of thing occurring & as with all things so many ways around the system. I too have seen or read about it had biz colegues tell me of their experiences. I recall a bus Co that had its large fleet leased yet another funder refinanced it to the tune of multi millions. How can this occur one asks? Also know of parties leasing something whatever then on selling it at a given time retaining the cash from the sale & just paying the lease amount.

Receivers are with utmost respect to any ex MN parties who maybe same, the pirates or if you prefer buzzards of the commercial world. In the main they sell everything off at often ludicrous prices, usually via auction just to ensure they get their not insubstantial fees paid rather than sell the Co as a whole (if viable) or in an orderly manner. I believe that the receiver more often than not has no idea of what the business did if not a basic everyday one. It is unfortunate that some Co's get into trouble due to poor-lax management sometimes not (or not wanting to) recognising it, even not being paid by their clients in an orderly manner or due time. Those Co's were in effect good profitable Co's with management that may well have acted too late or dare I say it 'trusted.' We often bought bits & pieces of specialist equipment at 10% at most of real cost some of it almost new or portions of the Co we saw value in.

Would be surprised that ex directors would be kept on as consultants with a receiver as from what I know they play 'your first best friend' when seeking to secure the job, then your worst nightmare once they have so I am told? This is so especially if you appoint the administrator-receiver apparently?

I still recall a major bank saying to my partner & I so long ago when we were in start up phase "no they could not lend against a multi (un leveraged) million $ equipment, however if we owned the building they could...." Guess what we silly buggers went off sold some assets we really did not wish to & bought the building. We then went back to that same bank & fellow & this is what he said. "Well yes you own the building (with a mortgage) congratulations but what happens if your business fails? Then we have equipment we will have possibly difficulty in selling & a tenant less building."

I being a pleasant, quietly spoken everyday nice guy did a minor dummy spit, saying some things I should not of. I believe it is called 'burning your bridges.' (: Years later that same bank came to us seeking our business as we had climbed to being a large Co & invited us to lunch in their boardroom in the big end of town. We accepted, hey how often does a bank buy you a good lunch then blow warm air up your trousers saying how great the biz is what a success story? Anyway a delightful lunch, best of wines etc was had. I retold the story to the senior manager presiding over the boardroom lunch to stunned silence all around. I though got a lovely warm fuzzy feeling & no we never did do business with that bank.

[robpage]

The Ex-Directors are often the only ones who "Know where the bodies are buried " . The company I am talking about ended up in a House of Commons inquiry , and there were so many lies told that it was almost believable . if the Directors go into a voluntary receivership , they appoint the receiver . They get the cream . At the end of the day , the receiver got paid , the directors got paid , the staff got minimum redundancy , from the government , and the shareholders were screwed for over £30.000.000

[leratty]

Rob sadly not an unusual story. I recall an ex PM of Aus of recent times brother was well known for this sort of thing, yet the press rarely said anything about it. Of course it could have just been rumours....? Did not know that the directors if putting Co into receivership could touch anything once the receiver was in control so bemused how, 'they got the cream' or 'were paid?' If the former you mean the receivers yes reckon so.