Packer directors resign after Crown ruled unfit for Sydney casino
Two representatives of James Packer have resigned as Crown Resorts directors, while the casino mogul will end his relationship with a third in an attempt to address his problematic influence over the crisis-stricken company.
The announcement on Wednesday morning comes a day after the release of an independent review that found Crown was not fit to hold a licence for its new Sydney casino, and identified Mr Packer’s influence over Crown as having “disastrous consequences for the company”.
A spokesman for Mr Packer’s private company Consolidated Press Holdings, which owns 37 per cent of Crown, said that its board representatives Guy Jalland and Michael Johnston had resigned from Crown with immediate effect.
CPH would also end the “consultancy” with its third board representative, John Poynton, who will request to be considered as an independent director, the spokesman said.
“With the resignation of the two CPH nominees on the Crown board and the ending of the consultancy with Mr Poynton, CPH will have no involvement on the Crown board,” the CPH spokesman said.
“The issue of CPH’s representation on the Crown board, and future communications between those representatives and CPH, were potentially complex matters for ILGA [the Independent Liquor & Gaming Authority) and Crown to resolve.
“The steps announced today take them off the table, giving Crown’s board clear air to work with ILGA in the execution of its announced reform agenda, and become a model casino operator. CPH supports these efforts.”
More to come
Business reporter at The Age and Sydney Morning Herald.
Most Viewed in Business
Source: Thanks smh.com