A hot and sunny day working on the internal and external aspects of the Kode takeover; culminating with an evening meeting with Peter Smith, resolving many of them as the miners’s dispute widens and the world’s large nations realise that they cannot coordinate economic matters
Up on time and my normal breakfast of toast and fruit juice. Early to Little End Road to collect certain items of post, files on the BMMG and industry affairs and to talk in some depth with Derek Weatherby on aspects of the takeover and administration. We decide the Kode advisers have got to be restrained from interfering with the process of budgeting and that all contact from now on should be through Derek himself. Off to Grove House and the morning working on general office matters and catching up to date. Over lunch I write up my list of concerns and queries for Peter Smith to consider and in late afternoon I hear that he will be visiting in the evening with Stephen Day to discuss these, the consultancy and the draft of circular. Our new £200K DTI grant has certainly helped things.
I also speak in the afternoon to Richard James who reports on his meetings with Mr George of Townsends and the latest draft of the acquisition agreement. A good evening’s meeting where, although we do not agree on the reasons for the problem that occurred, they understand my feelings on the fairness to minority shareholders and the equality in the trade up deals. We agree the role and scope of my ongoing consultancy but still have to differ on the question of warranties and indemnities and also on the wording of a competition clause all of which I require to be minimised. Home late and an hour watching the news and current affairs programmes on TV. The NUM dispute is widening with the transport unions calling on members to block shipments of coal, coke and fuel oil to the power stations and steel works. On the eve of the Economic Summit, many politicians agree that there is not the realisation, let alone the political will, to rise above the budgetary squabbles and coordinate European and World expansion. A beautifully sunny and rather hot day today but Grove House buffered the temperature quite well.