Seigneur stays silent over £2m. offer for feudal title
Saturday 26th February 2011, 2:29PM GMT.
SEIGNEUR Michael Beaumont was yesterday reluctant to discuss the publication of private letters that revealed Sir David Barclay had offered to buy the island’s feudal lease and his title.
When approached by the Guernsey Press, the seigneur (pictured) said he knew nothing of what had been published in the latest Sark News Letter, compiled by Sark Estate Management managing director Kevin Delaney.
But after hearing that details of the proposal from Sir David were in the public domain, Mr Beaumont, whose rejection of the January 2010 offer included ‘at the moment’, said it was up to the family to publish what they liked. ‘It’s fine by me. If they want to publish their letters, let them. The whole thing is ridiculous.’
The previously-confidential correspondence demonstrated that Sir David had offered Mr Beaumont £1m. for the island’s feudal lease and title and a further £1m. as compensation for the loss of his £28,000-a-year stipend.
‘It’s up to them what they write,’ said Mr Beaumont, who declined to comment further on the subject.
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Full marks to the Seigneur for turning down the offer from the Barclays.
Now we see the true colours of the Barclays agenda for Sark. Flora?, fauna?, lifestyle?, economy?, tourism?, hotels?, democracy?, investment?, employment? – they are all simply smoke screens.
As many suspected they simply want their own mini country and more importantly, their own tax regime.
I’ve always believed in the independence of Sark but now I think that the island would be stronger, safer and more stable under the custody of Guernsey.
Then watch the Barclays run for cover and sell their assets in Sark.
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Welcome back Sarkdog.
Such wisdom, foresight and self dellusion.
Now, don’t forget the rules. Anyone who does not curtail to the M Beaumont led Sark cabel and posts a comment that shows even a hint of independent thought and analysis is to be branded as a traitor to Sark and most importantly must be portayed as being in the pay of SEM!
Patronising in the extreme.
The truth is that although many find Delaney’s newsheet agressive and hard to swallow it is consistantly revealing insights into the workings of the Sark cabel that they are desperate to keep under wraps.
Even worse, try as they might, they don’t seem to be able to shut him up.
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Popping in to open garden fetes and accepting a bit of forelock touching hardly constitutes being resonsible for the welfare of the islands tenants in the past.
Before democracy, in a form landed, on Sark why did Mr. Beaumont not show an interest visibly in how young families on island got loans for their house builds -if you managed to get a plot that is!. Did he pop in regularly to the school and playgroup to see how the children were faring? Did he go out and about the island spending money in the resturants and hotels thus speaking to the staff and owners to see how they were coping and offering to bring in new laws to assist their enterprises if needed?
Did he try and bring in a healthcare system for all not just leave one of his committees to pop in and see how the old were faring.
Now with democracy, he is able to hide behind his various numerous committees and if they make a bad or silly law, and so far it is a long list, he can then blame his committees for their errors.
I do not think that he will be remembered for a lot of bonhomie or kindness to his people and as a person who was totally involved on an equal level with the rest of the residents.
Maybe the money is not enough as he probably wants to make sure that he, and his heirs are OK for to rest of their lives. He certainly has not said NO and shut the door with a firm slam behind him.
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alreet there…. err Sarkman.. dont mean to judge but i’m fairly certain you mean ‘cabal’.
cheers then!
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Sarkman, old boy, I don’t understand your reference to patronising?
The truth is that feudalism wasn’t ideal and Sark’s chosen brand of democracy is still evolving. Democracies evolve, they are not created overnight in response to the rambling propaganda and repetitive spin of a vocal minority.
One cast iron fact is that Sark would be infinitely worse off under the commercial ownership and dictatorship of SEM. Just ask anyone who has worked on Brecqhou with the promise of a job for life.
It saddens me to admit that the authority and autonomy of Sark has been seriously undermined. It has become too vulnerable and too fragile to administer itself effectively. Delegate the core administration to Guernsey with elected representatives and retain the Douzaine to look after parochial issues.
That’s got to be worth 20% of my pounds.
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To anyone interested for a GOOD CHUCKLE!! Google ebenezerlepage.blogspot.com/ and another ebenezerlepage.blogspot.com/2011/01/what does-kevin-do.html
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@Sarkman, I think that at last there is NO MORE “The Sark Newsletter” (Gutter Press of Sark) available on line, so now PERHAPS KD has now been SHUT UP! So perhaps you would like to eat your own words in the last paragraph of above comment by you.
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Margaret Le Page
http://sarknewsletter.com/
One should study more & comment less. The Seigneur is holding onto his position by his fingertips.
The fact he refuses to answer reasonable questions, which relate to his past conduct & creative accounting practices, speak volumes.
Events are taken over themselves. There will be a collision sooner or later.
Too many have questions.
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Margaret
What on earth are you talking about? The Sark newsletter is still online, I don’t see that changing.
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@ “Phil” and “Paul” You’re both right “B@**#r!!!!!!!
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A question for you “Paul”. Have you heard of the “BARK LARK”. Check it out!!!
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“Phil” and “Paul” You are both right on that one. Yes I made a BooBoo!! What a GREAT PITY that I wasn’t right. To anyone interested check out “the BARK LARK” I haven’t seen it mentioned in the “Gutter Press of Sark” namely the Sark Newsletter.
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Margaret Le Page
The facts speak for themselves. You make numerous claims about a free press you’re so well informed about you can’t even find it online.
¿ɐıןɐɹʇsnɐ uı noʎ oʇ pǝןıɐɯ s,ʇı ǝqʎɐɯ
Keep up the good fight.
Keep taking your tablets.
Don’t waste my time.
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Your kidding me Paul?
The prolific blogger and M Beaumont apologist Margaret Le Page actually lives in Australia?
Well, G’day Maggie!
No danger of you coming and joining those of us that actually live on Sark under the rule of your beloved Seigneur and his cabal?
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Well G’Day Sarkman, Nooooo there is definitely no danger that I should ever return to Sark or Guernsey for that matter!!! I certainly thank my lucky stars that I left the whole caboodle many years ago!!!! Phew!!!!! I have never made it a secret that I am VERY LUCKY that I now live in Australia
“Paul” I must have forgotton to take my 3rd Valium of the day, Tut!Tut! Personally I think it is you that are wasting your own time and may I say it, admiration for the 2 Brechou tenants who are MUCH MUCH too busy, to be aware of your posts (but maybe KD is keeping an eye on them) having just won control of the Maybourne Hotels for around 1.6 billion UK pounds (my keyboard here in Australia doesn’t have the pound sign) and of course they’re selling off The Cavendish, now that should hold their attention for a while!! Now can you tell me that they really and truely have concern for the Sarks’ residents democratic rights, I personally doubt this, there is definitely some other reason for their interest in Sark.
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Well I live in London (as I have explained before) and would comment that to describe the Sark newsletter when it is produced and wholly financed by one of the parties to a dispute as the “free press” is simply so misleading as to amount to an untruth. I also do not have to live in Sark to recognise insults and innuendo. The manner in which the Sark newsletter makes its case carries a message in itself.
The tone is unpleasant and bullying.
The interpretation of Mr Beaumont’s letter in which he refuses to sell Sark to the Barclay brothers, as being some how to Mr Beaumont’s discredit is frankly strange, I mean if some one offers to buy my house from me, I can either accept or refuse. And if I refuse how that could be construed as being evidence that I am “really” contemplating a sale escapes me.
I would also comment that if Margaret La Page does live in Australia this has no bearing on whether her arguments are correct.
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Thank you David Barry for that.
Unfortunately there are one or two commentators on this subject that (and I’m being kind here) are rather colloquial, I know, I was born and brought up amongst them. But I wasn’t born a Carre’ for nothing, who used to be a tough lot!!!
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Sarkman.
Your heroes live in Monaco, so what if Margeret lives in Aus.
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Actually there was a detail in the Barclays’ letter of offer to purchase the fief which I found absolutely hilarious. Mr Beaumont was invited to respond to a fax located in….. Switzerland!
All it needed was for the letter to be pp’d by E. Strobes and the artistic integrity of the thing would have been complete.
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For your opinion to carry weight. It must matter whether you live here or not. It probably also matters how long you have lived here. Sark bursts at the seams with interesting and decent people. I wouldn’t live any where else.
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Very well said Nichola. It is easy to have an opinion if you do not appreciate or understand the heartbeat of a community. Sark does, indeed, have an eclectic mix of decent, honest and hard-working characters who are proud to call Sark their home – either permanently or temporarily.
Such people will continue to live here and provide the essenece and backbone of Sark long after SEM have moved on for for the safety and comfort of some other convenient tax haven.
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Yes to both “Nichola” and “Sarkdog”.
And yes my opinions are coming from an outsider, but I also am VERY PROUD of my connections with Sark (they being Ancestral relatives that also actually worked and lived on Sark and added to the History of the Island). I knew Sark in its’ halcyon days back in the 60′s and 70′s and stayed with relatives on a number of occasions and also visited on many, many occasions.
It GREATLY SADDENS me to see the VILE! character assassinations being conducted on or off the Island, FOR WHAT? The avarice of a “FEW”.
It REALLY IS TIME to hear from the current residents’ of Sark, NOT JUST A FEW!
I am sure that the Seigneur will be the last Fief of Sark but I also believe that his lease on Sark should be returned to the Crown AND NOT SOLD to anyone who has X amount of pounds to buy his lease. (Whatever their reasons?)
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While I agree that the future of Sark is up to those who live on Sark and that “outsiders” not living there day to day do not understand all of the nuances of the situation, I think it is a little unfair to say that we are not entitled to our opinions. I think there are a couple of things to consider. One is that it is an on-line open comments section and people have opinions on all kinds of issues which do not directly effect them. I hold quite strong opinions in favour of Aun Sang Suu Kyi – so do many others – like most Amnesty International supporters – I haven’t even visited Burma and neither have most of them (not comparing Sark to Burma here, just giving an example of a situation that a lot of “outsiders” take an interest because they feel it is unjust). Also, as the defence of Sark has been funded by the UK government, therefore by UK taxpayers. I’m more than happy for my taxes to be spent on “levelling the playing field” in Sark a bit, but I’m entitled to take an interest in everything that my taxes are spent on and have my say on whether or not I think it’s a good use of my money.
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Of course people are entitled to they’re opinions.This platform allows you to air them. But it is easy to call for change if that change doesn’t effect you actually.
Margaret is it really the avarice of the few? I am not greedy but I need a weekly wage. I work for SEM and honestly they treat me very well. It appears to me that the world is going to hell in a hand cart. Has Sark not fallen on its feet?
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Fair enough, Nichola. I probably got the wrong end of the stick. And of course it much easier for me to talk when it won’t have a direct effect on my life. As I’m sure you know, Sark hardly ever (perhaps after the first election) is a major feature in the UK national press, and I and I’m sure many of the other outsiders who post on here follow what’s happening there out of genuine affection for and interest in the place. And of course investment could be a very good thing, it just comes accross from here that it comes with pressure to change things, occasionaly verging on aggressive – Sark Newsletter is so unconciliatory in tone. In future I will try to be less judgemental in my tone and not make flippant comments about catapaults again! And I can’t speak for anyone else but I don’t see how anyone could criticise you just for making a living.
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“Nichola”
MMMMMMMMMM! Glad it’s you and not me earning a crust with SEM. But REALLY! DOES THE ENDS JUSTIFY THE MEANS? G’Day from OZ.
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“Nichola”
You consider that Sark has “fallen on its’ feet”.
The only problem with that concept is the awfully HEAVY LEAD BOOTS being worn on those feet!!
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Margaret Le Page
Surely you mean freed from the shackles of antiquated feudalism?
Qualify your statements if not.
You poke away & expect a reaction. At least have a reason to poke in the first place.
Take a deep breath & your Valium before replying.
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“Paul” Darling!!!! So Nice to hear from you, I HAVE missed you!!!! I suggest that you don’t put words in my mouth Thank you. Do you REALLY believe EVERTHING that you read? POOR YOU.!!!
You need to take a lesson in MODERN DAY FEUDALISM. This actually does exist!!!
Those with the BIGGEST BUCKS are your Lords’ and Masters’ THESE DAYS. Work it out for yourself. And while you are doing that go over to Sark and help POOR OLD KEV tread those Grapes. Mind you the VENOM that would ooze out of his and your pores into the wine would certainly put me off giving it a taste. And NO I don’t actually take Valium, That was pure sarcasm, Trust you to believe that! G’Day from Oz! No
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“Paul” Dear!! I’ll give you a CLUE! Study the GEOLOGICAL make up of Sark. Lots’ of LEAD there.
Here endeth the Lesson of the Day.
I have VERY PERSONAL reasons for my posts and interests in Sark and they are MOST DEFINITELY NOT FINANCIAL!! G’Day from OZ!
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