Richard Branson - Bailout

[Thor]

So I heard on the radio yesterday that Branson wants a £500m bailout from the government and will put his Becker island worth £80m up as collatoroal. A couple of things if I may.

1) all his companies are registered in the BVI and trying to ascertain a paper trail or understand what they do or pay tax or where they pay it is nigh on impossible.
2) he has lived on that island for 14 years and as it’s a zero tax haven he has not paid one penny to HMRC in that time.
3) it’s a private company which will live and die by the decisions of his management team.
4) he is supposed to be worth £4-5bn depending on what you read, does he really need a bailout?

So all in all I do not beleive that the uk government should bail him out. I really feel for his workers and yes I’d love to support them all, but if the company fails then surely at that point the government Can hoover it up for free, keep the staff, run the business and in time return it for sale to the private sector for sale (I say this as the government does not want to own stuff anymore) and ultimately profit.

Or is Branson not as rich as is thought? For a man who has the Wale that’s I mention surely £500m is not a lot of money is it? Failing that borrowing that sum from commercial markets must be doable if it’s backed by him personally?

Something does not smell right here.

[Ronnie Hotdogs]

I doubt he’s got £500m sitting in his bank account.

Also, you don’t get to be worth £5 billion by putting your hand in your own pocket.

[Dunners]

Trust RedO to pop up defending the Tory scum.

[Ronnie Hotdogs]

Is he Tory?

I had him down as a socialist given his involvement in public transport and the NHS.

[Dunners]

He's certainly done his bit to redistribute wealth.

[o-no]

So I heard on the radio yesterday that Branson wants a £500m bailout from the government and will put his Becker island worth £80m up as collatoroal. A couple of things if I may.

1) all his companies are registered in the BVI and trying to ascertain a paper trail or understand what they do or pay tax or where they pay it is nigh on impossible.
2) he has lived on that island for 14 years and as it’s a zero tax haven he has not paid one penny to HMRC in that time.
3) it’s a private company which will live and die by the decisions of his management team.
4) he is supposed to be worth £4-5bn depending on what you read, does he really need a bailout?

So all in all I do not beleive that the uk government should bail him out. I really feel for his workers and yes I’d love to support them all, but if the company fails then surely at that point the government Can hoover it up for free, keep the staff, run the business and in time return it for sale to the private sector for sale (I say this as the government does not want to own stuff anymore) and ultimately profit.

Or is Branson not as rich as is thought? For a man who has the Wale that’s I mention surely £500m is not a lot of money is it? Failing that borrowing that sum from commercial markets must be doable if it’s backed by him personally?

Something does not smell right here.

They're not bailing him personally out though are they.

Are you saying that companies part-owned by rich,well-known, attention-seeking individuals should be excluded from the bail out, because I don't think the personality of the owner, or where he lives, should be a factor in whether someones job gets saved or not.

[Dunners]

O-no: I tend to agree with you. The problem with the big personality CEOs is that they overshadow everything. But right now the priority has to be securing jobs and household income.

However, that should be conditional on a global effort by governments to set a new corporate framework whereby short-term shareholder return isn't the sole aim anymore. Most people like Denmark's approach to bailouts, but for to work and to shift corporates behaviours it needs to be adopted across many developed nations.

[Rich Tea Wellin]

Capitalism until it doesn’t work for you anymore. Then begging to the nation.

[Clive Evans]

A week or so ago, I started a thread about this pretty unpleasant character, who I think some people have quite unfairly enhanced his reputation.

[Disoriented]

A week or so ago, I started a thread about this pretty unpleasant character, who I think some people have quite unfairly enhanced his reputation.

Some pretty unpleasant character? Johnson? Gove? Hancock? Patel? Rees-Mugg?

No, none of the above. Branson is more unpleasant than that lot?

Really?

[LittleMate]

So I heard on the radio yesterday that Branson wants a £500m bailout from the government and will put his Becker island worth £80m up as collatoroal. A couple of things if I may.

1) all his companies are registered in the BVI and trying to ascertain a paper trail or understand what they do or pay tax or where they pay it is nigh on impossible.
2) he has lived on that island for 14 years and as it’s a zero tax haven he has not paid one penny to HMRC in that time.
3) it’s a private company which will live and die by the decisions of his management team.
4) he is supposed to be worth £4-5bn depending on what you read, does he really need a bailout?

So all in all I do not beleive that the uk government should bail him out. I really feel for his workers and yes I’d love to support them all, but if the company fails then surely at that point the government Can hoover it up for free, keep the staff, run the business and in time return it for sale to the private sector for sale (I say this as the government does not want to own stuff anymore) and ultimately profit.

Or is Branson not as rich as is thought? For a man who has the Wale that’s I mention surely £500m is not a lot of money is it? Failing that borrowing that sum from commercial markets must be doable if it’s backed by him personally?

Something does not smell right here.

Jack Walker, the former Blackburn owner, died and his worth was c.£330 million. He made his money at Walker Steel, which was based in Northern Ireland. Walker Steel received £275 million in government grants.........................

[Constanza]

A bit like my first sexual experience this is virgin on the ridiculous

[Adz]

Any government bailout should hit shareholders equally

[LeighO]

When BA were in trouble, did Branson not pontificate on the ways of a free market, stating they should be allowed to go to the wall if ‘the market’ deemed it so? He added that others, such as Virgin, would pick up the slack and take over routes etc. and run them more efficiently. Changed his tune now hasn’t he?

[Dunners]

He certainly has.

Although, he did have a point at the time about BA. They did not offer a great product and were only able to hold onto their market share courtesy of the slots they had at Heathrow.

[Max B Gold]

He certainly has.

Although, he did have a point at the time about BA. They did not offer a great product and were only able to hold onto their market share courtesy of the slots they had at Heathrow.

So he was just jealous?

[Dunners]

Politics of envy.

[EliotNes]

He shouldn't get a penny of tax-payers money and he should never have got a knighthood. My dislike for the guy is huge.

[ComeOnYouOs]

He shouldn't get a penny of tax-payers money and he should never have got a knighthood. My dislike for the guy is huge.

My dislike for him is huger !

[StillSpike]

Heat's off Branson ?

https://www.thenational.scot/news/18400 ... ref=twtrec

[Dunners]

Heh! This should be a test of the special relationship.

[Stamford O]

How much money do you have to have before you lose your social conscience

[tuffers#1]

The Right wing muppets will still blow
smoke up his arse .

[Ornchurch]

I think that he should open a GoFundMe page and start doing laps of his island.

[tuffers#1]

Trump owns glof course not Islands