Bike has been stored for a few years and I want to replace the fuel in the tank as it wont start. Whats the consensus on the easiest way to empty the tank? thanks.

Remove the hose from the outlet stub and connect a suitable length of hose to it with the other end in a can. Then bridge terminals 30 and 87 of the fuel pump relay socket and turn on the ignition. The pump will run continuously and pump the tank dry.
Unfortunately you need to remove the fairing to get at the relay but you can do the same thing by with the relay and fairing in place by using the kill switch to turn the relay back on every time it stops, but it gets a bit tiresome if the tank is quite full.

Whats wrong with shoving a hose in the tank and syphoning it out ?

If the fuel is really bad, siphoning would save the fuel pump and filters.

Yes, not something I’d want to try again there are siphoning hoses with a built in bulb used to get the flow going so you don’t have to taste test the old fuel.

Funny, I never thought of siphoning, as these days you generally accept that fuel tank apertures rarely will fit a hose. Forgetting Im dealing with a 27 year old bike. Hopefully its just bad fuel?

Before firing it off, have you replaced the timing belts?
Double check the plugs to see if they need cleaning or replacing, and assuming you have spark and air, if you already tried to start it with old varnished fuel you may need to replace the fuel filter.

Good luck- once you have it running again I bet you will hate yourself for letting it sit- like I did! Such an awesome bike and a pleasure to be a caretaker for a little while.