Sports Direct trying to ‘drive Debenhams into administration’

Mike Ashley’s Sports Direct is backing a legal challenge against Debenhams’ restructuring plan to “drive it into administration so that it can pick up its assets on the cheap”, a court was told today.

The sports retailer is backing a challenge brought by Combined Property Control Group (CPC), which represents the landlords of six Debenhams stores, against the department store’s rescue deal.

If CPC wins the case, which began at London’s High Court today, the restructuring plan could unravel, tipping the retailer into administration.

In May the retailer secured the backing of its creditors to push ahead with a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) restructuring plan, which earmarked 50 stores for closure and approved rent reductions at more than 100.

Sports Direct, which owns rival department store House of Fraser, was Debenhams’ biggest shareholder before the company was taken over by a group of its lenders in a move that wiped out existing shareholders.

In written submissions to the High Court Tom Smith QC, representing Debenhams, said: “Sports Direct is not itself a landlord of any of the Company’s premises. And it can hardly be suggested that it is providing the funding and indemnification out of charity.

“It is obviously doing this because it thinks it is in its own commercial interests to do so.”

He added: “Sports Direct wants to drive its principal competitor out of business…it wants to drive Debenhams into administration so that it can pick up its assets on the cheap.”

City A.M. has contacted Sports Direct for comment.

Mike Ashley backs challenge to Debenhams rescue deal

A deal that saved Debenhams from administration will be challenged in the High Court this week, putting the retailer’s future back into doubt.

A commercial landlord – backed by Mike Ashley’s Sports Direct group – is fighting the plan which saw Debenhams agree to shut 50 stores and secure rent cuts on others in May.

If successful, it could lead Debenhams to fall back into administration.

The retailer said it was “extremely confident” the action would fail.

Earlier this year, Debenhams fell into the hands of its lenders as part of an administration process, wiping out Mr Ashley’s near-30% stake in the company.

Shortly afterwards the creditors approved the rescue deal – or company voluntary agreement (CVA) – which will see landlords take rental cuts of up to 50%.

Combined Property Control (CPC), which owns the freehold to six Debenhams stores, including Southampton, Harrogate and Folkestone, argues that the CVA was not run properly and should be overturned.

In a twist, the legal case – which begins on Monday – is being funded by Sports Direct, which launched – but then withdrew – a similar challenge in July.

That came after Mr Ashley twice said he was considering making an offer for Debenhams in April.

Of the latest legal case, a spokesperson for Debenhams said: “We remain extremely confident this challenge is without merit and expect it to fail.

“In the meantime, we are progressing with our restructuring, which was approved by the vast majority of creditors, including over 80% of landlords.”

The retailer said it would appeal if it lost the case.

Before it was rescued, Britain’s biggest department store chain had been hit by a succession of profit warnings amid a retail slowdown on the High Street.

The firm, which currently has 166 stores and employs about 25,000 people, hopes its CVA and recent changes to management will get it back on track.

Stefaan Vansteenkiste from restructuring specialists Alvarez & Marsal became chief executive last month, replacing Sergio Bucher who stepped down in April.

But if CPC wins its case, Debenhams’ restructuring plan could unravel.

According to reports over the weekend, Debenhams has asked advisers at professional services firm Deloitte to come up with contingency plans should it lose the case and its CVA be derailed.

The High Court case ends on Friday, although the ruling is likely to be delivered at a later date after the judge has deliberated.

Government announces £500m plan to help farmers hit by no-deal Brexit

Ministers are working on a no-deal Brexit plan for farming in which the government would step in and buy slaughtered livestock at set prices in the event of a collapse in European demand because of high tariffs.

Boris Johnson travelled to Wales today and pledged that British farmers would be better off if the UK left the European Union at the end of October even if it were without a deal.

Under plans being finalised by Michael Gove, the former environment secretary who is now in charge of Whitehall no-deal planning, the government would agree to buy any lamb and beef at the point of slaughter at a pre-determined price.

The commitment, expected to cost the Treasury about half a billion pounds a year, would also cover some arable crops where EU exports might dry up.

Mr Johnson also pledged today to unveil a replacement to the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy that will ensure farmers get a “better deal” than at present.

But farmers’ leaders are concerned that the government scheme may have to last for several years while trade deals are negotiated.

There is also concern that they may never make up for the lack of market access to the EU, which would be hard to win back, even if an eventual trade deal were struck.

The UK beef industry exports about 92,000 tonnes of beef to the EU which will face tariffs of 65 per cent of wholesale value, depending on the category of product. The cumulative cost of beef exports facing EU tariffs is more than £250 million.

EU sheep meat and live animal imports will face tariffs of about 46 per cent, making British lamb exports to Europe uneconomic. Economists have predicted that a no-deal Brexit would depress the market rate for lamb by 30 per cent.

Alun Cairns, the Welsh secretary, suggested that new global markets, including in Japan, would be available to sheep meat producers.

“We are now looking to the growth that will come from right around the world,” he told Today on BBC Radio 4.

“I would point to the market in Japan that has just been opened to Welsh and British sheep, for example, so exports are already taking place there. That is a significant market for which we haven’t even scratched the surface yet.”

However, Liz Saville Roberts, Plaid Cymru’s Westminster leader, pointed out that Japanese market had been opened up to Welsh lamb by the EU-Japan trade deal.

Mr Cairns insisted that as an independent trading nation “there will be these markets and these opportunities there”.

Asked what he would say to those who said were threatening civil unrest if their export markets were destroyed, he said: “New markets have already opened up and there are new protocols in place for additional markets as well.”

Minette Batters, president of the National Farmers’ Union, said the mass slaughter of livestock was “absolutely something that we want to avoid at all costs”, as she queried where lamb products would go if farmers were “tariffed out of the EU market”.

“Trade deals don’t just get picked off the shelf in a couple of months,” she said.

Helen Roberts, development officer for the National Sheep Association (NSA) in Wales, called on Mr Johnson to “stop playing Russian roulette with the industry which he appears to be doing at the moment”.

She told Today: “If we do go out with a no-deal it will be absolutely catastrophic, even if it’s just for a few months.”

Asked about the possibility of civil unrest, including roadblocks and tractor protests, among sheep producers, she said: “I think they will, I think it’s time to come and stand up for ourselves and be counted.”

Why you need SD Card recovery plans

You never think about something that is small and a part of your phone or computer like an SD card. However, when you lose your files you are going to be in a panic.

An SD card is a small device that fits into your phone or your computer and allows you to record media and to share it. If you are doing a lot of videos, it is important to make sure that you are working on a device that has a plan in place for your SD Card data recovery.

Why Would I Be Thinking About Videos?

Videos make up a lot of the content that is being posted by companies these days. That can be training videos, or marketing videos. What is important to note is that the content is being created for the purpose of sharing it with followers and social media or employees.

If the files have been removed it is impossible to be able to have access to that content. In addition to that, the content must be available for later use. How many times have you created content and then walked away and forgotten about it? I am sure that it has been quite a bit of times. You need to have the content and the media that you need available at your fingertips.

You can do that if you have a proper plan in place to ensure that all your data is being handled. You need to check out the solution and the amazing dashboard from iSkysoft data recovery.

Memory card recovery is very simple when you have a solution already thought out. There is nothing worse than losing critical data that is going to ensure that you no longer going to have any issues with recovery.

What Can Cause Data Loss on a SD Card?

You can lose data in ways you never thought possible such as:

1. Malware Issues: Malware can strike at any moment and cause bad memory loss on your cards. You never know when you are going to have an attack and that means that you may end up not being able to recover your files. It is very important to ensure that you have a plan in place for handling these issues. You must have a recovery system at hand.
2. File Issues: You never know when there is going to be a corruption with a file and that means that you need to have a system to fix issues with your files.
3. Improper Use of your SD Card; Your card is very small and it can lead to a lot of issues of you do not have a plan in place. It must never been underestimated the flimsy nature and the small nature of the cards or you will lose important information.
4. Accidental Formatting: When you are running an upgrade on your system you may possibly accidentally format your device. You need to ensure that you have a plan in place that will allow you to revert it back to an earlier version is this is going to be an issue for you.
5. Other Issues With Your Card: If you live in an area that is very wet or very hot, there are many other issues as well that you might experience in terms of the card not having information that is recoverable on it available to you. Because the files may no longer be there.

What Can You Do About SD Video Card Recovery?

You need to have a software solution that puts the control back in your hands. You want to be able to recover and access your files in your moment of need. You need to have a quick and easy system that has all the issues that could go wrong solved with a few clicks. This is one of those tools that will allow you to recover your media files from any reason that they were lost as well as any format. By taking a few minutes and familiarizing yourself with all the options you will be aware of the potential.

As a Business You Cannot Forget Your Needs for Backups

No one thinks about data missing until it is gone. That is a big problem. Data needs to be available to you in the moment that it is needed. That means that a plan needs to be in place to recover every aspect of it going missing or there will be no solution in the long term. Take control of your business and have a plan for your data backups. Also know that you will not have to wait around for the IT department to help you with the process when you are ready to recover the data you lost check out the solutions you have to keep your SD Card data.

Photo by Mark Solarski on Unsplash

Gove and Javid announce no-deal Brexit now ‘assumed’ by government

The government is now “working on the assumption” of a no-deal Brexit, Michael Gove has said.

Mr Gove said his team still aimed to come to an agreement with Brussels but, writing in the Sunday Times, he added: “No deal is now a very real prospect.”

The prime minister has made Mr Gove responsible for preparing for no-deal.

Treasury sources say they expect more than £1bn of extra funding to be made available later this week for no-deal planning and preparation.

Writing in the Sunday Telegraph, Chancellor Sajid Javid said there would be “significant extra funding” for 500 new Border Force officers and “possible” improved infrastructure at British ports.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has told Mr Gove to chair no-deal meetings seven days a week until Brexit is delivered, according to the Sunday Times.

Mr Gove said tweaks to Theresa May’s withdrawal agreement – which was approved by the EU but resoundingly rejected by Parliament – would not be enough.

“You can’t just reheat the dish that’s been sent back and expect that will make it more palatable,” he wrote.

He added he hoped EU leaders might yet open up to the idea of striking a new deal, “but we must operate on the assumption that they will not”.

“While we are optimistic about the future, we are realistic about the need to plan for every eventuality.”

Mr Gove highlighted a major flaw of Mrs May’s deal as the Irish backstop plan – a measure designed to prevent the introduction of a hard border on the island of Ireland.

So far the backstop has proved a sticking point in the Brexit negotiations.

A no-deal Brexit would mean the UK leaving the EU and cutting ties immediately, with no agreement in place.

The UK would follow World Trade Organization rules if it wanted to trade with the EU and other countries, while also trying to negotiate free-trade deals.

But with Britain outside the EU, there could be physical checkpoints to monitor people and goods crossing in and out of the UK.

No-confidence vote

Speaking to Sky’s Sophy Ridge, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said he would do everything to prevent a no-deal Brexit.

He reiterated his call for a new referendum – insisting he would still hold one if Labour were in power – and said, in the event of a no-deal Brexit, Labour would campaign to remain in the EU.

Mr Corbyn also said he would look at whether to call a no-confidence vote in the government after Parliament returns in September.

Liberal Democrat leader Jo Swinson told Sky that, in the event of a general election, her party’s message would be: “Stop Brexit, stop Boris and start renewing our country.”

Mr Gove is one of several new ministers pressing on with Brexit preparations since joining Mr Johnson’s cabinet earlier this week.

Newly appointed Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Rishi Sunak, told Sky: “We’re turbo-charging preparations for no-deal, that is now the government’s number one priority.”

He said if the EU would not reopen discussions about the Irish backstop plan then “it’s right that we prepare properly, with conviction, and importantly with the financial resources that the Treasury will now supply properly”.