Peterborough speedway protesters branded 'selfish'

Peterborough Telegraph

Speedway supporters in Peterborough were called 'selfish' by  company boss for trying to stop development of the Showground site in Peterborough where motorcycle racing has taken place for 50 years.

Transcript

00:00 Paul, I know it's a sore point, but why can't you include a Speedway track in your music?

00:07 It's a great point!

00:09 It's the one word he hasn't used yet!

00:11 To be fair, put your money on the table now!

00:15 Is that my time?

00:17 No, no, no, no, because I've got all day to talk about this.

00:21 So, the reason why we can't have Speedway, as I've said to you Paul, 25 times,

00:27 and I've said to Speedway 250 times,

00:31 it loses money.

00:33 It lost the charity. They keep saying it's viable. It is not viable.

00:37 I can show you the accounts, the records, the finances over 50 years of losing money.

00:44 A charity cannot support a sport that is privately owned to lose money.

00:51 Now, their accounts say it made money.

00:54 It made £7,000.

00:57 But that's because the charity was supporting it financially.

01:01 Now, why can't we, as we go forward, when it's not the charity,

01:05 who in their right mind commercially would support our privately owned business to lose us money?

01:12 Any hands up?

01:15 That is the bottom line answer.

01:18 The other answer is who in their right mind

01:21 - could be some Speedway fans in the room -

01:24 would buy our house if Speedway was here.

01:26 Or here, or here, or here.

01:28 It does not work.

01:30 But you would probably buy a house if there's a driving range.

01:34 Or if there's other facilities.

01:37 So, commercially and viability-wise, it does not work.

01:41 And also operationally, to develop housing and leisure, it doesn't work.

01:46 What we do have is letters of support for this development.

01:51 And those letters of support - thank you -

01:54 those letters of support are really powerful.

01:58 Enormous letters of support.

02:01 And those letters of support at the moment probably represent about 50,000 people in the community.

02:09 So not 1,800 or 500,

02:12 but about 50,000 people in the community are supporting and backing and the voice of that.

02:19 We believe we have pipeline getting up to 100,000 people supporting this.

02:26 Today, we would love your support.

02:29 That's my selling bit.

02:31 So if anybody wants to talk to me later or write us a lovely letter of support,

02:34 we would massively appreciate that. Thank you.

02:36 Actually, this is support here.

02:38 This is what people of Leedsbrook want and need.

02:41 Rather than a very small cohort.

02:44 And the other thing is - sorry, my last thing. Sorry, Paul, you brought it up.

02:48 Is how bloody selfish of a very small cohort of people

02:55 trying to stop a development for their own sport.

03:01 14 times a year, three hours per time.

03:04 They're trying to stop this from happening in Peterborough.

03:07 Really, really selfish.

03:10 It's what people do.

03:14 Thank you.

03:16 [APPLAUSE]

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