Castlemona Gone Into Liquidation

[Robin Hood]

The rot sets in when Government starts subsidising something that cannot stand on its own two feet trying to preserve a business that is in failure.

 

Mea classic example.

 

Ah well someone had to say it.

 

The MEA isn't exactly a failure. it's a state of the art outfit with an amazing infrastruture and a very highly qualified and dedicated workforce. Govt should just pay off the debts from their reserves. They'd still have plenty left. This is the rainy day the reserves were built up for. If the economy grows as it has been doing, we'll build it back up again in 10/15 years.

 

The money will only be used for civil service pensions. there's too many of them anyway!

 

Privatise the MEA? - it would end up like the IOM's version of Railtrack.

 

As for the CMona, their debt registered at the FSC in 2005 was £5m+. It's a great shame to see such a fine building in a situation. It will re-open, it usually does. The timescale though is the difficult one to predict.......

[hboy]

The MEA isn't exactly a failure. it's a state of the art outfit with an amazing infrastruture and a very highly qualified and dedicated workforce. Govt should just pay off the debts from their reserves. They'd still have plenty left.

 

I find it absolutely incredible that someone can say "Well its only £400m or whatever ... we can afford to write it off lets just get on with things" I think that you'll find that paying it off will be difficult. Reserves are about a Billion so its 40% of everything they have. Plus you can't assume the economy will grow at the rate it has over the last 15 years because it won't.

 

The castlemona is a prime example of why it won't. If we had such a fantastic economy good hotels would be full of business travellers when in fact they are closing down and going bust. That is not a sign of an ecomomy firing ahead, its actually evidence of a decline.

[Grumble]

The rot sets in when Government starts subsidising something that cannot stand on its own two feet trying to preserve a business that is in failure.

 

Agriculture?

 

no, Manx Radio

 

As I understand it, Manx Radio could stand on it's own feet perfectly well and without an annual subvention - but it would sound like yet another pop music station with little Manx content. I'd be surprised if many Manx people wanted that.

[thesultanofsheight]

As I understand it, Manx Radio could stand on it's own feet perfectly well and without an annual subvention - but it would sound like yet another pop music station with little Manx content. I'd be surprised if many Manx people wanted that.

 

I would be extremely surprised if that statement was based in fact. Where would the additional £850,000 in revenue come from? Playing pop music would be unlikely to generate the sort or revenue to replace what MR gets from the government. Also stations like Energy and 3fm seem to survive without such assistance - by employing less staff and being more commercially aware.

 

You obviously feel that hoards of people would pay to listen to such quality acts as Alex Brindley, Suzie, Richardson, and nights playing country and western music. Frankly I don't.

[stookie]

Maybe posters shouldn't put their own spin on things that get said either. Instead of checking before making a comment there seems to have been an assumption the point had to be about subsidies - why?

 

Easiest thing to do then is to remove the need for people to make assumptions and furnish them with what they need to know to understand your point.

 

Sorry. Most people who post here seem to me to be very 'up' on local affairs and what's in the news. I will practice what I preach and won't make that assumption again.

[stookie]

As I understand it, Manx Radio could stand on it's own feet perfectly well and without an annual subvention - but it would sound like yet another pop music station with little Manx content. I'd be surprised if many Manx people wanted that.

 

I would be extremely surprised if that statement was based in fact. Where would the additional £850,000 in revenue come from? Playing pop music would be unlikely to generate the sort or revenue to replace what MR gets from the government. Also stations like Energy and 3fm seem to survive without such assistance - by employing less staff and being more commercially aware.

 

You obviously feel that hoards of people would pay to listen to such quality acts as Alex Brindley, Suzie, Richardson, and nights playing country and western music. Frankly I don't.

 

MR would have to cut back on all the 'public service' padding. No loss for me, I must say.

[Lonan3]

As I understand it, Manx Radio could stand on it's own feet perfectly well and without an annual subvention - but it would sound like yet another pop music station with little Manx content. I'd be surprised if many Manx people wanted that.

 

I would be extremely surprised if that statement was based in fact. Where would the additional £850,000 in revenue come from? Playing pop music would be unlikely to generate the sort or revenue to replace what MR gets from the government. Also stations like Energy and 3fm seem to survive without such assistance - by employing less staff and being more commercially aware.

 

I believe its called 'public service'? That's something that neither Energy or 3fm appear to have any interest in. Programmes about the countryside, or local politics and events are best done by a station that doesn't have to rely entirely on advertising revenue for its existence. If the only choice left was between Energy and 3fm, I'd have to switch the radio off, because neither of them provide what I want - and despite the protests of management and employees of the other two, I've no doubt that a very large percentage of local people feel the same.

 

Anyway, this thread was meant to be about the disastrous closing of a local hotel so... meanwhile, back at the ranch.... we have all the fuss about people 'losing' their christmas treats due to their choice to plough money into Farepak, but what about some sympathy/charity for the staff of the Castle Mona who - through no apparent fault of their own - have had their celebrations utterly destroyed.

[Grumble]

I think that may be unfair, Lonan3...and I usually agree with you!

 

The people who lost money to Farepak were doing their best to save for a good Christmas for their families, whereas the staff at the Castle Mona MAY have been part of the problems that sank the place. We've had numerous threads here in the past about overpriced facilities and poor customer service - I dunno personally, but could that be a factor here?

[thesultanofsheight]

I believe its called 'public service'? That's something that neither Energy or 3fm appear to have any interest in. Programmes about the countryside, or local politics and events are best done by a station that doesn't have to rely entirely on advertising revenue for its existence.

 

There is a fine line between public service broadcasting and mediocre news with bias-to-the-point-of-fawning political reporting. Would that sort of thing happen without the eight hundred grand a year investment by the taxpayer?

 

Back to the Castlemona !!!!!!!!!!

 

I agree with Grumble. Its not like Fairpak.

 

What I want to know though is did the lapdancers get all their clothes back?

[Rhumsaa]

They do have quite an extensive news team compared to the other 2 stations that have 1 maybe 2 staff

 

With the resources for journalism and reporting at their disposal you'd have hoped they'd have more of a go get em attitude rather than a let the news come to us feel

[stookie]

In an insolvent position, the directors cannot negotiate with creditors for fear of favouring one over the others.

 

Guess they had no choice but put the company into liquidation, in an insolvent situation there is little choice and the sooner the better. Apart from the legal, imagine the commercial impact of saying to your creditors when things get a bit tight 'having a bit of a hard time at the mo'. Almost guaranteed insolvency after that!

 

But if it is insolvent and staying open a few more weeks would mean it would be less so, with proper controls in place the creditors would be stupid not to agree. And if they had agreement from them ALL, I'm sure they couldn't be guilty of favouring any one over the other(s). I think the creditors knew already that something wasn't right.

[Robin Hood]

As I understand it, Manx Radio could stand on it's own feet perfectly well and without an annual subvention - but it would sound like yet another pop music station with little Manx content. I'd be surprised if many Manx people wanted that.

 

I would be extremely surprised if that statement was based in fact. Where would the additional £850,000 in revenue come from? Playing pop music would be unlikely to generate the sort or revenue to replace what MR gets from the government. Also stations like Energy and 3fm seem to survive without such assistance - by employing less staff and being more commercially aware.

 

I believe its called 'public service'? That's something that neither Energy or 3fm appear to have any interest in. Programmes about the countryside, or local politics and events are best done by a station that doesn't have to rely entirely on advertising revenue for its existence. If the only choice left was between Energy and 3fm, I'd have to switch the radio off, because neither of them provide what I want - and despite the protests of management and employees of the other two, I've no doubt that a very large percentage of local people feel the same.

 

Anyway, this thread was meant to be about the disastrous closing of a local hotel so... meanwhile, back at the ranch.... we have all the fuss about people 'losing' their christmas treats due to their choice to plough money into Farepak, but what about some sympathy/charity for the staff of the Castle Mona who - through no apparent fault of their own - have had their celebrations utterly destroyed.

 

nonesense, manx radio used to do everything it does now, but only on 180k per year, so where is the justification for the extra 800k? its not been spent on output, ask insiders. or are you an insider Lonan 3, you always defend them?

 

anyway back to the Castle Mona.......

 

It's a private business and couldnt make ends meet, sad but true, we are not privvy to the boks so can only stab in the dark about what its liabilities actually are/were.

[Gladys]

In an insolvent position, the directors cannot negotiate with creditors for fear of favouring one over the others.

 

Guess they had no choice but put the company into liquidation, in an insolvent situation there is little choice and the sooner the better. Apart from the legal, imagine the commercial impact of saying to your creditors when things get a bit tight 'having a bit of a hard time at the mo'. Almost guaranteed insolvency after that!

 

But if it is insolvent and staying open a few more weeks would mean it would be less so, with proper controls in place the creditors would be stupid not to agree. And if they had agreement from them ALL, I'm sure they couldn't be guilty of favouring any one over the other(s). I think the creditors knew already that something wasn't right.

The agreement of ALL their creditors? Including the tax and VAT men? I doubt it somehow. In any case, they would be trading whilst insolvent and that is a definite no, no. The only way they could deal with the problem is to take formal action, and that is what they did.

[Steve Gribbon]

A bit off thread

 

This post is going to get me some stick but it is my considered opinion. I saw similar happen in $hetland in teh oil boom days.

 

In a small Island economy such as ours with an outrageous amount of government cash available, that cash has to be percolated down to the people somehow. Grants and capital projects etc. A lot of people get very rich on the way.

 

MEA - they (he?) was aware there was a huge amount of money this Island had at its disposal and so every firm, small contractor, big contractor and land-owner (gas-pipeline) etc. all had a *ahem* legitimate way of bagging some of that cash during the various projects the MEA embarked upon overh the past 10 years.

 

Maybe Manx Radio's HUGE subsidy is a similar way of filtering cash into the community, allowing some individuals to swell their hippers on the way. Maybe that is alright, I don't know.

 

And of course, every single Public Enquiry from childha to dodgy housing, gives a big kick back to our lawyers charging £100s of pounds per fucken hour. A nice easy way to grab a big, big handful out of the pot.

 

I can't really tie this post up to the Castle Mona, but there has been mention of Manx Radio's huge government payout, and of course where there is money going adrift it is fair game to bring up the MEA. Lest we forget.

[púca]

Good luck to the staff. It must have been an awful shock to them all. Getting laid off is horrible enough when you know about it and have some time to get to grips with it, but they'd have had no time to get a handle on this at all. I've been through this in a corporate, and we had every possible service available to ensure things went as smoothly as possible for all concerned. I don't condone the govt subsidising failing businesses, but they might want to think about offering these people some guidance and support in figuring out what happens next.