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Toon buyback plan announced

Plans to stage a fans’ takeover of Newcastle United were launched today.

Details of the Yes We Can campaign, which hopes to raise enough cash to buy out Mike Ashley, were unveiled at Newcastle Civic Centre.

The plan is based on supporters unlocking £20,000 from their pension fund, topped up by Government tax relief, and buying a stake in the Toon.

The Newcastle United Supporters Trust has been set up as the vehicle to promote the campaign and will also have a key role in the future running of the club if a takeover is successful.

Yorkshire-based financial group SIPP Brokers are behind the initiative, which takes advantage of Government legislation allowing people to invest part of their pension pot into business projects.

They have already been working with a team of financial advisers across the region, who have so far secured pledges worth more than £24m from their clients.

The invitation has being thrown open to any Toon fan wanting to safeguard the club’s future and have a say in the way it is run.

Neil Mitchell, the interim chair of the Trust, said: “The overriding aim of the Trust is to buy into the club to make sure supporters have a voice in the corridors of power and the current situation at St James’s shows how vital that is.

“The Yes We Can campaign shows that there is serious interest out there.”

Self-Invested Personal Pensions (SIPP) allow people to choose what they invest their cash in.

By agreeing to unlock £20,000, HM Revenue & Customs tops that up with £5,000 in tax relief.

Based on that, the aim is to sell 8,000 stakes in the club to raise around £200m to buy out Ashley and have a fund for running costs and transfers.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .