Chi Onwurah, the Labour MP for Newcastle Central, has refused to back down after Mike Ashley, Newcastle’s owner, accused her of making “an irresponsible and misleading attempt … to create a media circus by portraying me as a pantomime villain” when criticising his ownership of the club in the House of Commons.
Onwurah, a Newcastle supporter, submitted a petition to parliament last month in which she said the team was in desperate need of support “that should include investment in players, training facilities and community engagement” and that Ashley “has not made this support forthcoming”. She called on the government “to take action to prevent unscrupulous football club owners from exploiting their clubs, their fans and their local communities, with particular reference to Mike Ashley and Newcastle United”.
In a letter sent to Jeremy Wright, the secretary of state for digital, culture, media and sport, Ashley claimed the petition “presents a wholly inaccurate assessment of the situation at Newcastle United” and set out his contributions to the club, which he said included interest-free loans of £144m, clearing debts of £76m, “numerous community engagement programmes” and training facilities that “have improved significantly during my tenure, are fit for purpose and very clearly do not have a negative impact on performance, given we secured a place in the top 10 of the Premier League last season”.
The Sports Direct founder further claimed Onwurah’s petition had provoked “an unprecedented volume of unacceptable abuse towards staff at Sports Direct and its associated companies”. He concluded: “I would be happy to provide written answers to any questions that you may have, not only about football ownership, but also about the manner in which the petition was presented and its subsequent repercussions.” The DCMS confirmed it had received the letter and would respond in due course.
During a difficult summer at St James’ Park six players have arrived at a combined cost of £10.5m, and last week Rafael Benítez said of his club’s dealings – which have since been augmented by the arrival on loan of West Brom’s Salomón Rondón – that “the fans have to be concerned, we are concerned. I’m really worried”.
Onwurah defended her petition today as “merely a reflection of the concerns and strength and depth of feeling of so many Newcastle fans who contacted me as their member of parliament”. It was inspired by the fan-led #IfRafaGoesWeGo campaign in which supporters are asked “not to spend any money at either Sports Direct or Newcastle until either Rafa Benítez signs a long-term deal or Mike Ashley sells the club”. At the time of writing, 1,900 people had committed to doing so.
“I am pleased Mr Ashley has finally decided to speak about his investment in Newcastle, even if it is to the secretary of state rather than the numerous fans, media and others who have attempted to engage with him over the years,” Onwurah said. “However, his letter does not address the central point: the lack of investment in Newcastle players which has left the club with one of the lowest net spend figures in the Premier League.”
Saying that abuse of Sports Direct staff made her “very upset”, Onwurah denied it had been caused by her petition. “Mr Ashley knows very well the calls to boycott Sports Direct existed long before my petition,” she said.
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