www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-birmingham-13326666
See the Phoenix four have been struck off from being directors for a number of years.
Still part of me thinks that they are being used as a scapegoat for the failure of something that was on life support before they got hold of it. Also think the flipside is that they kept 6000 people in work for 5 years longer than they could have been
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They did themselves proud, even if they did keep some people in work
The four local businessmen and former MG Rover chief executive Kevin Howe paid themselves a total of £42m during their five-year ownership of the company, which they bought for a token £10 and left with more than £1bn in debts. The report concluded their financial rewards were "excessively large" despite the fact that the businessmen invested no money in the group after they bought it and took risks which were "relatively insubstantial".
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>> The report concluded their financial
>> rewards were "excessively large" despite the fact that the businessmen invested no money in the
>> group after they bought it and took risks which were "relatively insubstantial".
In my view they were a bunch of crooks who saw an opportunity to trouser a large sum of money for no risk. And the shame is that they went to China to negotiate a deal, the Chinese got them drunk, and they then sold off rights to the cars to the Chinese at a bargain price. Crooks and incompetent.
Striking them off means nothing. I'm sure they are now enjoying early retirements on the Costa del thieves.
It could be said that the real villains were the politicians (Blair et al) who did not see it coming. They preferred a bunch of spivs talking fluffy bunny and candy floss rather than that Moulton chap who turned out to have been on the ball with his predictions.
Last edited by: Leif on Sun 8 May 11 at 22:09
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>It could be said that the real villains were the politicians (Blair et al) who did not see it coming. >They preferred a bunch of spivs talking fluffy bunny and candy floss rather than that Moulton >chap who turned out to have been on the ball with his predictions.
The real villains were the guys who sold it to BMW rather than honda.
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A dying company which could never be saved, but the bunch of opportunists knew that and they milked for every penny they could get for personal gain.
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>> The real villains were the guys who sold it to BMW rather than honda.
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I think that was waste o' space.
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I didn't think they wanted them in the first place. I think they bought rover in exchange for all the help the gov gave them to secure al-yamamah.
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Rover deserved to die, look at the followng growth areas of last 10 - 15 years, that were
No self respecting large mainstream manufacturers product line is complete without the following:
1. Compact SUVs, cross overs etc... by spinning Landrover off out of the group and selling it to Ford, Rover had no such offered, yet this was and is a huge market with many buyers chosing such cars as "lifestyle statements" , same customers would have previously bought hatchbacks/saloons.
2. MPVs, compact and full size. Ford with the Galaxy, Renault with the Espace, and then even more successfully, Rentaul with the Scenic, Citroen with the Picasso and GM with the Zafira, all sold shed loads again to customers who would have previously just bought a hatchback or estate car.
3. "Cutesy" small cars, by improving packaging and adding a little luxury as lead by Mini, this market has really grown, as with SUVs by spinning out Mini and selling it to BMW (or by BMW keeping it when they sold MG Rover), MGR had no such product in their line up
4. Luxury 4 door saloons, witness the fact that BMW began selling more 3 series than Ford sold Mondeos at least Rover had a credible go with this with the R75, but when I seriously looked at one in 2004, it had been cost stripped and the materials of construction were obviously compromised by then.
Thats where the market went, importantly the growth of the market for SUVs, crossovers, and MPVs and similar such vehicles was emphatically at the expense of the market for hatchbacks, saloons and estates, yet MG Rover was left with what? cars in those shrinking categories that in themselves were not particularly competitive.
Some awful badged Tata Indicar - I visit India 6 times a year, beleive me I know how crap that little car is, yet Rover had the cheek to offer it as their city car at a time when designs such as the Toyota Yaris, and not to mention the mini, were seriously redefining that sector.
Oh dear, they SO deserved to die
GUY
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Very good short summary of the shysters action in the DT today
1. Bought company for £10 in 2000
2. Took £42 million out of the company in the next 5 years
3. Left the company with £42 million of debt.
One of those investigated used a programme called Evidence Eliminator on his computer within 24 hours of the enquiry. They claim to have done nothing to justify being struck off as directors. Well, they would say that, wouldn't they?
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Rover - Phoenix Four struck off - Perky Penguin
