Eight weeks to settle debt (From Basingstoke Gazette)

Eight weeks to settle debt

1:00pm Thursday 10th December 2009 in Football By John Boyman

BASINGSTOKE Town have been given eight weeks to settle their debt with the taxman and avoid a winding-up order.

At a hearing held at London’s High Court yesterday, Mr Registrar Simmonds adjourned the winding-up petition brought against the club by Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) for 56 days.

If the £12,000 debt is not paid by the end of this period, the Registrar would be likely to make a winding-up order – placing the club into the hands of an official receiver.

However, Town chairman Rafi Razzak last week stated that the board of directors were in a position to pay the debt off and this should be done well before the court-imposed deadline.

The problems stems from a £140,000 debt the club owed HMRC when Razzak took over as chairman two years ago.

The board came to a deal with the taxman, agreeing to pay the debt off at a rate of £5,000 a month, which the club has been doing ever since.

The debt is now down to £12,000 and would have been paid off by February – but HMRC demanded that the balance be paid immediately after Town were late making payments.