Day 202 - 11 Jan 96 - Page 11


     
     1        cheating?  Name one disciplinary offence against Ray Coton
     2        for lying and cheating.
     3        A.  You just have to read all this here.  He was someone
     4        who admits that he is docking crew hours in his restaurant;
     5        the appalling act of taking this money from crew when it
     6        was not there.  That is hardly the act of an honest man.
     7
     8   Q.   He said it was going on, he said it was going on throughout
     9        the time at Colchester from mid-80s right on until up to
    10        nearly when he left?
    11        A.  Yes, he did say that.
    12
    13   Q.   He said it was the company that was lying and cheating.
    14
    15   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  He did not actually say that, no.  He said
    16        that he was and that Mark Davis was.  I do not think I have
    17        had any evidence that it went higher than the area
    18        Supervisor, from any witness on either side in this case.
    19
    20   MR. MORRIS:  (To the witness)  So, are you saying that you were
    21        not aware of any personal animosity between Neil Skehel and
    22        Ray Coton; it was all a question of just professional, you
    23        know -----
    24        A.  Professional conduct, with Neil attempting to fulfil
    25        his job and trying to guide Ray to do the best he could at
    26        his job.
    27
    28   Q.   Was there not animosity between the two before that, at
    29        regional meetings and in other ways, that people knew about
    30        in the Company?
    31        A.  I would not say that there was any particular marked
    32        animosity between Neil and Ray at regional meetings before
    33        that.  I can think of, you know, these meetings where there
    34        is more animosity between other people than those two.
    35        I would not highlight that as a particular point of note.
    36        The only time that there was any -----
    37
    38   Q.   But there was animosity between the two, before -----
    39        A.  If I was to describe their relationship, I would not
    40        say that the relationship was one based on animosity at
    41        all, no.  It may have occurred at times, but that is not
    42        how I would characterise the relationship between the two
    43        of them.
    44
    45   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Some of the things which had been discovered,
    46        as I understand it -- leave aside for the moment whether
    47        Mark Davis knew about them -- had been going on when
    48        Ray Coton was Manager and Mark Davis was the area
    49        Supervisor, had they not?
    50        A.  Which things? 
    51 
    52   Q.   Can you remember the docking of pay, for instance? 
    53        A.  I thought the docking -----
    54
    55   MR. JUSTICE BELL:   Perhaps someone could remind me when the
    56        incident which involved Sally Spurgeon actually occurred.
    57
    58   MR. RAMPTON:  The evidence was -- and this has not been direct
    59        evidence; it is evidence really through admissions made by
    60        Mr. Coton in cross-examination -- but he accepted that

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