Simon Cowell slams Victoria Beckham and Richard Branson for seeking taxpayer bailout: 'Go to the bank'
TV show producer Simon Cowell and entrepreneur Duncan Bannatyne slammed celebrities like Victoria Beckham and Sir Richard Branson for seeking taxpayers money to pay their staff in order to save their companies.
Cowell and Bannatyne have both revealed that they are using their own means to pay their staff and keep their companies from sinking amid the coronavirus pandemic. The Virgin Atlantic boss asked the UK government for a £500 million ($620 million) bailout for his company even though he reportedly has not paid income tax for 14 years, The Sun reports.
On the other hand, Beckham reportedly told 30 of her employees at her fashion brand that they would be moved to the government's job retention scheme that pays a maximum of £2,500 ($3079.64) a month.
'Dragons' Den' star Bannatyne took to Twitter to slam Branson while having an argument with another social media user. He wrote, "I have gone to the Bank NOT the UK taxpayer. The bank. A viable business will get money from a Bank."
He also slammed Branson's offer to mortgage Necker Island, his home in the Caribbean as collateral to save the company and questioned whether it was worth the required sum. Cowell has agreed to pay his 50 full-time employees who work at his production company, Syco.
He also assured his employees that they would not be placed on furlough despite the fact that production has ceased on his TV shows in London and LA. It was just last month that Cowell told The Sun, "I don’t like celebrities telling people what to do, and I know this is a hugely difficult time for so many — worries about family, health, jobs, paying the mortgage and feeding their family are at the forefront of people's minds."
"But there are still other people in business and in entertainment with resources available, so today it's those people I'm urging to rise to this enormous challenge," he added. Cowell had also donated around £1.3million ($1,601,685) to help charities who are struggling in the coronavirus pandemic.
It has been reported that Victoria Beckham was left "upset" post the backlash she received post the news that she furloughed staff. According to reports, the designer has been having "the worst week". A source revealed, "Victoria's telling friends that despite it being her birthday, it's been the 'worst week'."
"She's really upset and doesn't think it's fair she's getting slammed for something a lot of companies and businesses are doing. She thinks it's unfair and had no idea the backlash would be this bad," the insider added.
We had earlier reported that a petition has been signed by more than 13,000 people which describes the business magnate a "disgrace to his country." The petition also slammed Virgin Care for suing the NHS for an unknown amount in 2017 over a dispute regarding the procurement process for contracts. The petition starter also said that given so many people have signed, it goes to show how many are angry about Branson's record.
"You’re not going to get him stripped of his knighthood but this is how people are feeling, it’s just the level of resentment," the petition starter said. The activist, 26, asked not to be identified and had shared the petition on his new social media network called Dunya Stays Mad (Dunya is the Arabic word for the world).