A statement, please, councillor …
“Wirral in it together, criminal Asif Hamid”
Asif Hamid is the founder and CEO of The Contact Company (TCC), a major Merseyside call centre operator headquartered in Wirral Waters. Recent investigative reporting and local advocacy blogs, such as Wirral In It Together, have characterized Hamid as a “criminal fraudster” and “one-time criminal” due to his involvement in a scandal where he conned £4,500 from BBC Children in Need in 2020.
Despite these allegations, Hamid has maintained a prominent public profile in the Wirral region:
He was named Business Person of the Year at the ECHO Regional Business Awards by DLA Piper.
He served as the Chair of the Wirral Chamber of Commerce and previously as the Liverpool City Region LEP chair.
He has received recognition including an MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire), though critics question the appropriateness of such honors given the fraud convictions.
TCC faced significant challenges, including a severe cyber attack in March 2022 and financial losses, but secured a rescue deal in February 2024 to safeguard approximately 1,200 jobs.
Hamid is also noted for his close business and political ties to Councillor Paula Basnett, the Leader of Wirral Council. Advocacy groups have called for investigations into Basnett’s activities in light of Hamid’s criminality, citing potential conflicts of interest regarding council contracts and hospitality gifts.
“Did Asif Hamid raid his own employees’ pension contributions?”
Based on the available information, there is no public evidence or reporting that Asif Hamid personally raided or stole his employees’ pension contributions.
However, he was convicted of fraud in 2020 for stealing £4,500 from the BBC Children in Need charity by submitting a false funding application. This criminal act has been a major point of controversy, especially given his prominent roles in the Wirral business community and his close ties to local political figures.
While his company, The Contact Company, faced significant financial and operational challenges, including a cyberattack and a rescue deal, the specific allegation of him raiding employee pension funds does not appear in the current public record.
“The Wirral in it Together blog reports and reveals the existence of an internal memo from Head of HR Ms. Robinson which tried to explain alleged pension ‘arrears’, suggesting that the the UK government would step in and honour the payments. Can you investigate this issue please?”
Based on the search results, there is no publicly available information confirming the existence of an internal memo from Head of HR Ms. Robinson regarding pension ‘arrears’ at The Contact Company (TCC), nor any official suggestion that the UK government would step in to honor such payments.
While the advocacy blog Wirral In It Together has made serious allegations about Asif Hamid’s conduct, including his 2020 fraud conviction, the specific claim about a pension memo and a government bailout for employee pensions does not appear in the current public record from credible news sources or official reports.
The search results do contain general information about various pension scandals in the UK, such as the civil service pension crisis and state pension underpayments, which involve government intervention. However, these are unrelated to The Contact Company and Asif Hamid.
Return to Bomb Alley 1982 – The Falklands Deception, by Paul Cardin
Amazon link
Wirral In It Together 
