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Sincerely,

 

Nigel

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11 JUNE 2020

Posted 1245 hrs https://www.cricketworld.com/ecb-ceo-tom-harrison-states-were-looking-at-the-most-significant-financial-crisis-in-ecb-history-we-ask-was-cricket-properly-insured-/63708.htm

Has the MCC made proper provision and insured against the business losses?

 

Posted 1200 hrs Letter to Chairman MCC + e-mail copy

Dear Gerald,

I am attaching a copy of my letter sent to you today at Lord’s via 1^st Class Mail.

Suffice it to say in addition, your sponsorship of the extraordinary Resolution “That the changes to the Club Rules are made to effect governance changes in accordance with the Explanatory Note (Pages 10,11and 12) to Agenda Item 9.” in preference to the advice given by a number of senior MCC Members and well known City Consultants advising the ISWP on making the necessary governance changes 5 years ago, is an insult to the intelligence of MCC Members and a degradation of our Royal Charter status. I hope Members will exercise their sovereignty at an inevitable SGM to reject your absurd plans.

Sincerely,

Nigel J Knott (Dr.)

 

To:                                         From: Knap Cottage Seend SN!2 6NN

Gerald Corbett

Chairman MCC

Lord’s Ground NW8 8QN

10 June 2020

Dear Gerald,

Reference MCC 2020 Annual General Meeting Report and A/c’s

I am writing to you as the non-executive MCC Chairman mandated with the responsibility of ensuring all business matters decided at MCC Committee meetings are lawful and obey the Club Rules.

 

The arrangements being made for the 2020 AGM are in breach of the traditional Agenda procedures being restricted to the Ordinary Business of the Club. The AGM “Explanatory Notes” make it very clear the traditional AGM arrangements are not possible in the present circumstances. Therefore, the Committee has put in place alternative plans to ensure the Ordinary Business Agenda executed at AGM is determined with temporary arrangements being in place to allow Members to “exercise their fundamental right of voting on business at the AGM” and no other extraordinary or special business must be determined at this AGM. Period.

There are two separate matters to consider a) the arrangements to hold an emergency “virtual AGM” and b) the ordinary business agenda items and the method of determination. It is the nature of the “business” being proposed at this virtual AGM and the emergency measures being employed that invite sanction.

 

Postal voting was introduced in 1999 for all Ordinary Business Items on the AGM Agenda for the first time in Club history. This year the Committee is allowing additional online voting to take place within a window of 4 hours and 29 minutes following the virtual AGM to allow Member access to the AGM proceedings before voting online. This online voting population therefore will be better informed and the two sets of voting patterns (offline/online) will differ.

 

There are however, two extraordinary business Items 8) Life Membership and 9) Governance that fall foul of the law as they cannot by any stretch of the imagination be classed as Ordinary Business Items.  These are matters of special or extraordinary interest to all MCC Members that must necessarily be the subject of Special or Extraordinary General Meeting arrangements called in the traditional manner with a quorum of 50 Members being present. The complex Rule changes required to implement these Extraordinary Resolutions require widespread Member consultation in advance of formal approval by a special majority at SGM. It is interesting to note the Club Rules of 1867 (Rule XV111) state only votes cast at SGM by those Members actually present at any SGM are valid. This Rule remained in principle until 2000.

 

Your highly contentious personal letter addressed to me dated 23 May 2020 breaches Club Rule 9 as you have trespassed within the rightful domain of the Secretary MCC and seek to influence the outcome of AGM Agenda Items 8) and 9) that must be expunged from the 2020 AGM Agenda being unlawfully included as Ordinary Business Items. Both Resolutions should await formal EGM/SGM determination by Members in less stressful times via offline methods.

By your latest actions you have failed in your duty of care as the Chairman of MCC Committee Meetings to guide the Committee in a direction that is in the best interests of the Club and all its Members.

Finally, a point of Order under what should be Agenda Item 2) “Matters arising from the 2019 Minutes” (Ref AGM Report p 59 paragraph 5). Mr. JB Mitchell (a lawyer) raised questions concerning the Royal Charter Incorporation and the status of Lord’s Cricket Ground. They remain unanswered and furthermore the proposed new Rule 19 retains the unnecessary appointment of a Custodian Trustee seven years after Royal Charter Incorporation took place!

 

I will be publishing the content of this letter to you at https://www.mccmembers.co.uk/StopPress1505.html  and trust you will respond constructively to my objections. Failing this I will join with other MCC Members in calling an urgent SGM to address matters.

 

Sincerely,

Nigel J Knott (Dr.)

Elected Playing Member 1966

Appointed by the MCC Committee to 6 Special Working Parties

Letter sent 1^st Class Mail and copy via e-mail

 

 

Copy of e-mail sent to Guy Lavender 0738 hrs

MCC Rules and Regulations

Dear Guy,

I trust you are keeping fit and healthy.

My reason for being in touch with you again concerns the unprecedented virtual MCC AGM arrangements.

 

The MCC Rules dated 2019 refer at 24.3 to Postal Voting Regulations. My 2019 Regulations have pages 4&5 missing together with pages 48 & 49. I can find no reference to any Postal Voting Regulations that are applicable.Please be kind enough to provide an explanation.

As you will know I am deeply concerned by the Committee decision to include the controversial AGM Agenda Items 8) and 9) in the online/offline poll arrangements.

I believe this Committee decision to be “repugnant or contrary to law or inconsistent with the provisions of the Royal Charter”.

In my opinion this MCC Committee action degrades and devalues the peerless standards of governace and behaviour expected from a Royal Charter Company. The MCC should be held in the highest public esteem and as a long serving MCC Member I am not proud of what is happening within the Grace Gates at this difficult time in our history.

Thank you,

Sincerely

Nigel

Dr Nigel Knott

10 JUNE 2020

Arrangements have been made for a virtual AGM to be staged at Lord’s Cricket Ground on 24th. June 2020 @1700hrs to formally approve the 2019 Report and A/c’s and determine the traditional Ordinary Business Agenda Items numbered 3-9. Two Items 8) and 9) are in fact Special or Extraordinary Business Items and therefore should not be included for determination on any AGM Agenda. These two Items should properly be made the subject of EGM/SGM arrangements in accordance with Club Rules. Any poll therefore on these items at AGM will be unlawful and the votes invalid.

It is in any event entirely unacceptable to determine matters of such importance with smart technology which will disadvantage a number of the more senior Members unfamiliar with a virtual environment. Will the internet platform or VPN be completely secure and failsafe ? I doubt it. This is a dangerous experiment designed to place vitally important matters such as Governance and  Club Finances under close scrutiny  – an example of the virtual truth that cunning times puts on to entrap the wisest. The lack of accountability and transparency associated with £ millions being written off in the Club A/c’s requires formal investigation. The Committee commissioned the ISWP to recommend restructuring and governance improvements which the Chairman MCC opposed personally and even chaired a Committee meeting that reversed the Committee decison taken in October 2014 to reduce the size of the MCC Committee. Extraordinary. We belong to a Royal Charter Company that is failing to implement peerless standards of governance that include transparency and accountability in all its business affairs.

A letter has been sent to the Chairman MCC and the contents will be published on this website @ Noon Thursday 11 June 2020.

 

Dr Nigel J Knott

Elected Playing Member MCC 1966

Appointed by MCC Committee to 6 Special WP’s 1992-2015

 

 

 

Another SGM held in the Long Room on 20 September 2007 concerning the contentious issue of Members paying to attend the 20/20 World Cup at Lord´s resulted in another embarrassing Committee defeat thus completing a hat trick! The Special Resolution required a two thirds majority and failed by more than 10%. The result confirmed a failure by the Committee to properly canvas Member views in advance.

The SGM held on 9 July 2007 resulted in defeat for the MCC Committee by 4167 votes in favour of the Resolution to 2741 against. This is the second defeat the Committee has suffered in the last two years where they have opposed special resolutions concerning the sale of debentures and the loss of terrestrial television coverage from Lord´s.

July 2007

An SGM is to be held at Lord´s on 9 July 2007 @1600 hrs (see SGM section) concerning the Debenture Scheme

March 2007

The details of a new Debenture Scheme have caused controversy and an SGM is being requisitioned by more than 200 signatories. The basic problem centres upon a shortage of seating space available for Members. The BSkyB deal has meant that more Members attend Lord´s as Test Matches can no longer be seen on terrestrial TV and the Debenture terms will mean that more outside commercial interests will further encroach on Member seating space.

June 2006

The MCC Committee has set up a Working Party to look into the broadcasting of Test Matches from Lord´s. The first meeting will take place on Thursday June 22nd and will be chaired by Peter Leaver QC.

4 May 2006

MCC Committee is defeated and a Resolution approved by the membership to set up a Working Party to investigate Test match cricket at Lords being available on terrestrial TV. Voting numbers:- For 2798 Against 1107. This is a historic landmark as it is the first time that the MCC Committee has been defeated with a postal ballot being employed to bolster the Committee opposition to the Resolution.

11 December 2005

22 Questions for the ECB to Answer

1) Where is the Trust document relating to the 585,000 partly paid Ordinary shares in Reigndei Ltd?

2) Why were the A/c’s of Derbeyork Trustees Ltd (DTL) for the period ended 31 December 2004 not filed at Companies House by 30 November 2005?

3) Why was the Annual Return of DTL for the period to 17 December 2004 not filed at Companies House until August 2005?

4) Why was the new Director appointed to DTL on 1 October 2004 not identified on this Annual Return?

5) Why was this new Director appointment not filed at Companies House until 29 July 2005?

6) Why is it necessary to hold in excess of 2.5 million cash in an offshore Company A/c in Guernsey?

7) Why are the figures shown in the ECB a/c´s for the years 2003-2004 different from the figures shown as the premiums receivable in the Reigndei a/c’s?

8) Why were the approved insurance claims of Reigndei not paid by the end of 2004?

9) Why were the 2004 wet weather insurance claims nearly 3X 2003?

10) Why were no Director emoluments shown in the ECB A/c´s for the year ended 31 December 2003?

11) Are any ECB Directors in receipt of emoluments from any company related to the ECB?

12) Where are the details of the reinsurance premiums of 211K paid by Reigndei Ltd in 2004?

13) Where are the details of the claims payable by Reigdei Ltd in respect of £1,476,123 in 2004?

14) Where is the management and control of Reigndei Ltd situated?

15) Who controls the monies held by Reigndei Ltd that have been transferred by the ECB?

16) Why is the ECB allowed to transfer money to an insurance company outside the regulatory supervision of the FSA?

17) Does Reigndei Ltd trade in Guernsey?

18) What are the reasons for Reigndei Ltd not being subject to UK Corporation Tax?

19) Who are the Directors DC Allen and RJ Gale of Reigndei Ltd., where are they resident, what are their duties and how are financial decisions made?

20) What are the duties and functions of the Directors of DTL?

21) Why are the standard contributions made to the pension scheme by the ECB 41.7% of salaries whilst there are no member contributions and special additional ECB contributions of £699,000 in 2004 and £500,000 in 2003?

22) Why is it necessary to create this arcane network of companies when it should be a simple matter for the ECB to arrange for wet weather indemnity directly through the London insurance market?

 

29 September 2005

Now we know the truth fresh from Westminster – the facts are these:-

Lord MacLaurin wrote as Chairman of the ECB to Chris Smith (Minister of Sport) in June 1998 requesting his authority to relax the rules governing A List Sports. This was done in order to attract more money into cricket from pay to view providers who were allowed to bid on the understanding that a substantial amount of live terrestrial broadcasting remained. The terms of the bids were sent to Chris Smith for approval before acceptance.

Lord MacLaurin made it clear to the new Chairman of the ECB David Morgan that the ECB had to gain approval from the Minister of Sport in advance of any new cricket contracts being signed and that subsatntial live terrrestrial coverage had to be guaranteed as a result of his negotiations with Chris Smith in 1998. This advice was ignored and the understanding dishonoured.

Tim Yeo asked the question “Is the ECB fit to be the governing authority of the game of cricket”? – from this evidence the answer has to be No.

The full unaudited transcript of the DCMS Select Committee Minutes from 29 November 2005 can be accessed here.

Here is an unaudited extract from the evidence given by Lord MacLaurin:-

Lord MacLaurin of Knebworth: I wrote to Chris on 23 June 1998 when it was agreed that Test cricket would go from the A list to the B list and on the second page of my letter to Chris, I said, “As you will recall, I have given my personal reassurances to you and the Prime Minister that in such an environment, the ECB would wish to keep a substantial amount of live coverage on the BBC”. We did not know that Channel 4 was going to get involved in those days and we were obviously talking to the BBC, so I am absolutely quite clear that in the deal that we did, Chris and I, we had to keep a substantial amount of cricket on free-to-air television.

From my point of view it is very clear indeed. I did the deal with Channel 4 and Sky and I had to confirm it with the Secretary of State before I was allowed to announce it. You could not have anything much clearer than that.

I think we can only surmise. I presume that the ECB was talking to the Department and getting clearance that they could deal with any broadcaster exclusively. I know that when the deal was going through I spoke to my successor, David Morgan, the Chairman of the ECB, and reminded him of our conversation and I reminded him of the deal that I had done, so he knew exactly what that was.

I had a conversation with Chris which was very clear; he would not allow me to announce anything until he was satisfied with the deal that was on the table. So I phoned Chris and said “This is the deal” and he said, “Okay, you can announce it.” In my letter it quite clearly says that a substantial amount of live coverage would be on free-to-air television. I do not have any doubt about that. I presume that happened, I do not know. Certainly David Morgan, the Chairman, knew of the deal. As to what has happened over the last negotiations, I really do not know.

The ECB/BSkyB deal is a hot topic that has caused a public outcry. The grass roots game will suffer and so will the pensioners and young aspiring Freddie Flintoff’s who cannot afford to pay for BSkyB. What are the ECB thinking about? Surely the greatest asset for the game is millions of fans having access to a variety of live broadcasts from free terrestrial TV and all other forms of new media coverage such as the Internet and Wi-Fi networks?

MCC Members can do their duty and protect our national game from exclusive commercial exploitation and ensure a balanced programme of broadcasting from Lord’s. Download the SGM Requisition Form (click on SGM) from this website, sign it and send it to Knap Cottage Seend SN12 6NN

The Financial Times on 5 November 2006 mentioned BT were going to launch a broadband television channel – will it be covering Test Match cricket live?