![[Copping and the Craiglands Hotel]](craiglands.jpg)
March 2, 2000
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Iain Copping and the Craiglands Hotel, Ilkley |
The success of Keighley Business Forum had led Copping to a relatively good life, with a salary of £46,000 and a fine detached home in Riddlesden.
As he worked hard to build both KBF, and the growing potential of the Waste Minimisation project in the mid 1990's, he also engaged in some private company dealings which have remained largely hidden.
When KBF organised 2 Northern Environmental conferences in 1996 and 1997 at the plush Craiglands Hotel in Ilkley, the business was handled by a private company called "Pro-Active Worldwide Ltd".
The company had been set up in 1995 by Roddie Barclay, the elusive millionaire businessman who had recently bought the Craiglands Hotel. Another director was Michael Norman Smith of YPL Communications. But Smith was replaced as a director by Iain Copping in 1997. Copping was a close friend and admirer of Barclay. Copping initially took half the shares in the company.
When Barclay finally resigned as a director in 1998, Copping's wife Barbara became the major shareholder, along with Stephen Wolstenholme, a friend of Copping who ran Cascade Logistics from a subsidised office at the Cedar House Business Centre.
Company records show losses over the 2 years of the conferences. In 1997, for example, £31,000 was raised from conference fees, of which £20,000 went to the Craiglands Hotel. "Administration expenses" accounted for a further £13,000.
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Happier Days - trip to London, September 1998.From left: Tin Parr (chair KBF); Cllr Andy Mudd (chair SRB); James Hill (KBF President); Iain Copping; Harry Johnson (KBF Transport group) |
Copping also set up another company called "Hotel Agenda (Reservations) Ltd" in 1997, along with his pal Roddie Barclay and another man John Madgwick. He took a 3rd of the shares in this company, which arranged hotel accommodation for business trips and did some work for KBF. It's was based in a subsidised office at Cedar House. Company records also show this company making yearly losses.
Iain Copping failed to disclose either directorships on the Companies House returns for Keighley Business Forum, as legally required. He also failed to inform the board of Keighley Business Forum.
KBF Chairman Tim Parr was astonished to learn of Iain Copping's private company dealings. He told KDIS:
"I was obviously aware of the existence of Hotel Agenda as a tenant. I had no idea that Copping had any involvement. If what you are saying is correct, I am horrified.
"I was totally unaware of the existence of Pro-active Worldwide Ltd. I would have expected Copping to have informed the board of any involvement he had. He did not. If what you say if correct, I am most unhappy."
Iain Copping told KDIS:
"I am no longer involved with Hotel Agenda and Pro Active has been dormant for nearly 2 years. Neither company made profits but Pro-active did take the risk for the 2 conferences held at the Craiglands.
"The conferences in fact were very good shop windows for the waste minimisation project and helped both get more companies involved plus very importantly get the message of best practise across to more companies.
"The work that KBF and NCEEM did was very effective and given opportunity would have been more so."
Copping was also involved in a number of other companies which appear to have never traded. One was "Pro-active South Africa Ltd" which was set up in 1996 by Copping, Barclay, Smith and Peter Michael Pullen - the Economics minister attached to the South African Embassy in London. KDIS understands that the intention of the company was to trade in property in South Africa. Barclay is believed to have a number of business interests there.
The company was dissolved in March 1999 as NCEEM came on stream.
The collapse of NCEEM and KBF has proved a severe personal blow for Iain Copping, who is widely seen as solely responsible for the debacle. However, the role of more powerful figures behind the scenes has yet to be scrutinised.
