A regular look at the world of business, compiled by INSIDER DEALER Bad company POPULAR MUSIC artiste Michacl I'm bad, I'm bad. you know it' Jackson has joined forces with the recently released Wall Street supercrook Michael Milken to launch an education-forkids cable TV channel.
Throughout the Reagan years, Milken cared S1 million a day from his less-than-spotlessiy-honest dealings, and served as the role model for Gordon "Greed is Good' Gekko in that great movie Wall Street'. He was fined S830 million in 1990, and sentenced to sen ycars in a country club-styie luxury California slammer, but was released in less than two.
According to a press release from Jacko: "Michacl Milken is my friend because he has been FEATURE through the fire, as 1 have, and emerged better for the process.
"He has been misunderstood, as i have been, and narsaly judged by those who had no man without ever spending •ga to assume tey kricw this even an hour in his company." MY OLD PAL, 'Society gems dealer' Darius Guppy (rhymes with Yuppie), and his business partner
Benedict Marsh, have
started five year sentences for staging a bogus robbery and subsequent false insurance claim.
They also copped fines of £533,000 apiece, and were warned they would get an extra three years each if they didn't cough up within six months. Both pleaded not guilty.
Guppy - best man at the wedding of Lady Di's brother, Earl Spencer - also pleaded gulity to three charges of taisely claiming VAT repayments on gold bullion exports. Marsh pleaded guilty on one count.
The judge handed out 22000 fines, or 45 additional days in the nick, on each charge. The two men were banned from holding company directorships for ten years. Breach of trust I EXPECT that Trotskyite scum such as yourselves will be rejoicing at the sad news that John Ferriday, former chief executive of mini-conglomerate Eagle Trust, is to spend six years as a guest of Her Maj after being convicted of stealing E13 million from the company, in cash and shares.
Eagle Trust made a cash or shares takeover offer for Saoutfit, in autumn 1987, backed by a rights issuc. Kight on cuc: the stock market crashed that October, knocking a third off the value of ET shares.
Samuelson shareholders sensibly went for the cash, and Mr dosh to meet a tidy underwriting bill.
While he denied everything.
the judge branded him "totally unscrupulous", and on top of the sentence, disqualified him from being a company director for ten years.
HILLSDOWN HOLDINGS -of Hartley's jam, Typhoo tea and Buxted chickens lame - has given its former company secretary a £200,000 pay-off. It feit that poor old Barry Legg was unable to do the job full-time anymore, after being elected as a Tory MP for Milton Keynes South West Incidentally, Hillsdown's links to the Britain's natural party of government are look.
ing good, after It last year looted the 2600 bill to Install a pond at the home of agriculture secretary John Selwyn Summer. It has also appointed former Tory cabinet minister Sir John Nott to Its board. Sterling stuff LORD STERLING of Plaistow, my fellow Carlton club member and Dover ferry union buster extraordinaire, recently enjoyed doubtlessi lavish hospitality from the leaders of one of last remaining degenerate workers states, as I believe you Trot chappies call them.
As my man Jeff says in the P&O group annual report: "Earher this month I accepted an invitation to visit Beijing and meet the Chinese premier, Li Peng.
This meeting left me in no doubt about the very positive future possibilities in the region and P&O's ability and capacity to participate in them.'
SOCIALIST OUTLOOK No.41. May 1, 1993. Page 13