Dejphon Chansiri mentioned in Parliament amid concerns over Sheffield Wednesday future

The Thai businessman, who has been owner of the S6 club since 2015, has hit the headlines recently for a series of statements and interviews, the content of which has seen him threaten to withdraw his funding of the club and to ask supporters to make up a £2m shortfall in cash flow that would pay for a HMRC bill and player and staff wages.

The club were placed under an EFL registration embargo for failure to pay the HMRC bill on time, though just hours after an interview with The Star in which he claimed monies owed in his personal business life were preventing payment of the bill, debts were settled.

A Wednesday evening adjournment debate secured by Matt Rodda, MP for Reading East, came at a time where Reading are at the centre of passionate protests by their supporters amid its running by owner Dai Yongge. It followed confirmation of plans for a new independent regulator in English football, outlined in the King's Speech.

In February, the government announced plans to appoint a regulator, following a fan-led review last year. King Charles said the Football Governance Bill, which will introduce a regulator, will "safeguard the future of football clubs for the benefit of communities and fans".

A number of clubs were mentioned in the debate, including Sheffield Wednesday. Owls supporter Clive Betts MP - Sheffield South East - committed Chansiri's name to Hansard for the first time by saying: "My hon. Friend (Rodda) is making a good point about the way in which football is often run by individuals who can, in the end, bring a whole club and its community down because of the way the club is managed.

"At Sheffield Wednesday, Dejphon Chansiri has put a lot of money into the club - great - but he has been saying recently that he may stop the funding, which is obviously a considerable threat. In the end, clubs are not just about the person who owns them, or the chairmen; they are about fans.

"Clubs belong to them, and they should have the right to be consulted right the way through on all those issues. We hope that the regulator, when it comes in, will have the powers to do precisely that."

In recent years, Wednesday have attempted to open up engagement with supporters groups through the Supporter Engagement Panel. The Sheffield Wednesday Supporters Trust was one such group that was initially welcomed onto the panel, but as per The Star's understanding has not been involved for some time. Among many other things, the 2021 fan-led review published by Tracey Crouch MP sought to further define the engagement processes between supporters and owners and put in place rules for clubs to abide by.

Betts continued later in the debate: "I think the consultation with fans is absolutely at the heart of this. It was at the heart of the fan-led review, and I pay tribute to the hon. Member for Chatham and Aylesford (Tracey Crouch) for that. For the fans, it will be really important that the legislation specifies how fans groups will be appointed as part of the consultation, and it should not be left to the owners of clubs to decide which fans they want to talk to and which they do not, because that is at the heart of the current problems in many clubs."

Former Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport Sir John Whittingdale said: "I do understand the concern expressed by the hon. Member for Sheffield South East (Mr Betts). Certainly, we would not wish to have a system in which the directors decided who they do and do not wish to talk to. It will be part of the licensing requirements that fans are involved. I am sure we will wish to explore that further during the passage of the Bill, but it is certainly the intention that that is one of the conditions for licensing.

"We have seen other examples of fans fighting back against their owners to save their clubs at Blackpool, Charlton Athletic and, as we have heard tonight, Reading. That should not have had to happen."

Looking ahead to the debate of The Bill over Football Governance, Whittingdale made clear that a wide range of subjects would be discussed, including stadium sales, financial regulation, guarding against 'breakaway leagues' and club protection 'from irresponsible owners.'

He said in part: "In short, through this legislation we are protecting the fundamentals of the game we love while ensuring a more sustainable future with fans at its heart for generations to come. Meanwhile, alongside the introduction of legislation, the Government will take the time to explore the extent to which preparatory work can be done ahead of the regulator being established in law."