MP Lizzi Collinge has been praised for giving a passionate speech in Parliament about Morecambe’s concerning situation.
The local MP urged Morecambe’s owner, Jason Whittingham, to sell the club amid a deepening crisis. Speaking during a parliamentary debate on the Football Governance Bill, which passed with 415 votes to 98 to establish an independent regulator for men’s football in England’s top five divisions, including Morecambe’s National League, she highlighted the ongoing takeover delays by Bond Group to Panjab Warriors.
The club faces financial strain, with players and staff awaiting two-thirds of their June wages, overdue by nearly two weeks, and debts including £131,000 in unpaid wages and a £45,000 VAT payment to HMRC, according to reports.
Panjab Warriors, the prospective buyers, have pledged to settle these debts upon completing the takeover and issued a final appeal to Whittingham to transfer ownership immediately.
Thank you to our MP Lizzi Collinge who today made this speech in Parliament in the Football Governance Bill debate. pic.twitter.com/LoMuBOMvwd
— Shrimps Trust 🦐 (@shrimpstrust) July 8, 2025
She said in the video above: “I had hoped to come to the house today with a spring in my step and see the sale of Morecambe FC go through.
“But this past week or so instead, Morecambe f c and our town have been put through hell, and we still can’t see the end of it.
“Over ten days ago, the EFL approved a buyer, the Punjab Warriors. They’re ready. They’re willing to buy. Clearance has been granted.
“Over fourteen months, significant funds have already been pumped into the football club by the new buyers.
“The current owner, Jason Whittingham, operating as a bond group, said he was ready to sell.
“But instead of getting the deal done, Jason Whittingham has, for whatever reason, stalled. He’s delayed. He’s given excuses. He tried to dismiss the board.
“In fact, it’s only through the good intentions of the local board members and their responsibility they feel towards Morecambe that saw their return to try and facilitate the sale. But yet again, Jason stalled.
“So now the board have gone again. The Panjab warriors have already poured in lots of money to the club. They’ve made it clear everything’s ready from their end, but still the sale has not been completed.
“Most distressingly, staff and players have not been paid their full wages. I’ve been receiving emails from constituents who would who work for the club and are desperately worried about how they’re gonna pay their bills.
“Our local citizens’ advice and food bank have had to step in because that’s what we do in Morecambe. We look after our own.
“And tomorrow, the club is due to pay £45,000 in VAT. Unless a sale goes through, there is no way the club can meet this obligation.
“And madam deputy speaker, until now, I have restrained from using the full extent of parliamentary privilege in this matter, because my focus has been getting this sale done. I’ve held my tongue while the EFL went through their due diligence process.
“I’ve implored Jason Whittingham directly to just get on with the sale. But this restraint has not produced the hope, the the the project, the progress that I’d hoped to see.
“So I now feel duty bound to use this privilege to lay out what I see, because what I suspect is that Jason Whittingham has built a house of cards, and now it is falling down around his ears.
“There’s mention of further unspecified investors even at this final stage.
“There’s a suspicion that the club is being used to leverage his own personal financial situation.
“Morecambe FC is being held hostage, and it breaks my heart.
“Morecambe FC is the cornerstone of our community, and what’s happening in Morecambe shows exactly why this bill is needed.
“Jason Whittingham and the likes of him should never have been allowed to buy a football club.
“Madam deputy speaker, last week, the secretary of state answered a question in this house about the sale.
“And I’d like to thank her and the sports minister for all their support behind the scenes in dealing with this unfolding disaster.
“This Labour government has stood by my community, and frankly, I am baffled that the Conservatives are opposing this bill.
“I know what a football club means to a town like Morecambe.
“This bill is a crucial step to stopping other towns like Morecambe going through this heartache.
“So I’m urging members across the house, please support this bill.
“And I say to Jason, come on, sign the damn paperwork.”
Speaker 2 said: “It’s only fitting, really, for me to finish with honorable friend, the member for Morecambe, who has been tireless in her defence of her club and her town.
“I had the privilege of going to Morecambe to meet with the Shrimps.
“And the the board that she rightly referenced who have done so much for the club, she, outlined more powerfully than any of us could the impact that this has, but also the strength of feeling about owners who refuse to sell their clubs even when the impact of that would be to bring those proud clubs to the verge of collapse.
“And I want to say to her that it’s been a privilege to work very closely with her, although I wish it had been on something more positive as I know she does.
“And I want to make clear from this dispatch box that this government takes a very, very dim view of owners who treat our clubs as playthings rather than the custodians that they are.”
A Shrimps Trust statement on the 8th July read: “It is with growing frustration that we report there has been no progress since our update on 7th July. Jason Whittingham remains uncommunicative, with both the Shrimps Trust and, we understand, Panjab Warriors.
“There is still no credible justification for the continued delay in the sale of Morecambe FC. Reports that he has suggested the existence of a new buyer to the National League are, in our view, highly questionable. We have seen no evidence of this.
“Meanwhile, staff continue to be left without full pay, now approaching two weeks overdue. This is unacceptable, and it is deeply unfair to those who have shown commitment and loyalty to the club through increasingly difficult circumstances.”
Strong statement issued by would-be Morecambe owners Panjab Warriors to Jason Whittingham
Morecambe owner blames abuse from fans for putting off potential buyers of club
