The SPL have announced that they have set up an independent commission to investigate undeclared payments from Rangers over an 11 year period.
The long running saga could result in the club being stripped of five SPL titles if they are found guilty of making payments to players which weren’t registered in their contracts with the SPL and SFA.
HMRC have been investigating the matter but no verdict has yet been delivered in the so-called bug tax case.
With Rangers about to be liquidated the issue has become complicated with Sevco chief Charles Green attempting to claim their history without accepting any punishments or sanctions for the old club.
Tonight’s statement read: “The Scottish Premier League today announced that it has appointed an independent Commission to inquire into alleged EBT payments and arrangements made by Rangers in relation to players during the period from 2000 until 2011.
“The Commission will determine whether during that period in relation to alleged EBT payments and arrangements for players, Rangers was in breach of the relevant SPL Rules.
“In the event that the independent Commission decides that such breach or breaches occurred the independent Commission will have powers to determine what sanctions, if any, are appropriate.”
Rangers have admitted to paying their players through the EBT scheme with the debate with HMRC over whether they were discretionary payments or contractual.
EBT’s are legal as a means of bonus but not if they are contractual, in such cases they are liable to income tax and national insurance.
If Rangers are found guilty of not declaring all of their players earnings the SPL can declare matches involving those players to be void with 3-0 defeats shown in the record books.
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today is my birthday – perfect present!
about time too! shame on them tut tut!
what are we even talking about them for? lets talk celtic, where are our new signings?, lenny says we can win the champions league, what are celtic going to do with our season ticket money, last night was rubbish and we know it, next week IS do or die game, we need europe as our spl will be so boring, face the facts boys
Exactly. How has it taken all this time to decide they are not going to deal with it?
My guess is they are terrified to upset RFC and Sevco supporters. They have realised just how bad the revelations will be and want to keep their distance.
am i missing something ? i thought they were already looking into this months ago? and a results of that looking their lawyers decided there was a case to answer? now they have convened a commission to look at it ????? sounds extremely extremely dodgy to me.
Sounds like they are passing the buck,,,,,,,,,,,,again!!!
Gutless coward’s!!
HH
Will they have the stars on their scabby strip this year. Surely they cant as they only have a month of history.
The stars on the jerseys reresent what they have been seeing since they were whacked for cheating the public.
They know they’re guilty we know they’re guilty why not just admit their guilt.
Will Ally ask who is on this independent commission, it’s only fair that the Sevco fans know who these people are.
Tomfoolery aside if you cheat in any sport you deserve the ulitimite punishment stripping of any honours gained whilst cheating.
Expect media to fully back the cheats, as Mr Speirs has already stated why remove titles and cups.
Titles and trophies MUST be stripped from them.They are corrupt,cheats , and arrogant pigs. The MSM all depict them as victims.They have hardly been punished at all.
I thought is was ‘any payment made in relation to footbal to any member of a club’ had to be made clear to SFA. Contractural or not. I await another ‘fudge’ on this. Boycott everything SFA!
Article 12.3 states “Furthermore, all payments, whether made by the club or otherwise, which are to be made to a player solely relating to his playing activities must be fully recorded within the relevant written agreement with the player prior to submission to the Scottish FA…”
Supposedly Regan contacted the SFAs member clubs back in March to ask them to declare any additional payments which formed part of a player’s wages. This was taken by some to mean that undeclared payments were rife in the game and by others as Regan trying to bring clubs out on the same side of the argument as Rangers. I am not aware of any club having come forward to say that they have committed such an offence.
This article on EBTs is quite good and shows the proof of double contracts uncovered by the BBC documentary ‘The Men Who Sold The Jerseys’.
http://www.mymultiplesclerosis.co.uk/rangers/unfair-advantage.html
I think that an enquiry is the right thing to do and that they will lose at least some of the titles with the weight of the evidence against them. It will also mean that a proper insight can be gained into the workings of the club during this period, which will no doubt mean more scandal and sleaze 🙂
‘…an independent commission’! How long before fat Sally and Chuckie demand to know their names?
even if they do have the stars, they’ll have one taken off them by uefa if they have titles stripped!!! the huns will be sick at that!!! 😛
ill believe it when/if, it happens.a way will be found to help them.or am i being a wee bit of a bitter and twisted chappie here
i thought when they went defunct the sponsership with tennents would have ended but i see they still have it on their strip
They’ve already got assurances from Regan and co that they will not lose titles, after sallys rant they wouldnt have agreed to the terms for their licence
No they didn’t. But I doubt that there is anyone in the sfa with balls enough to do the right thing. Besides, too many of them were involved.
It is starting to look like the sfa have passed the buck because they know the public is angry at the goings on for so long and that they have been trying to hide it now for months. So because they have to be seen to take some action, they are handing it all over.
They (sevco) should replace the stars with ‘little arrows’ all over their tainted and shamed little football strip. Its the strip Murray, Whyte and a few others will be wearing very soon. Their ‘chain-gang’ supporters would be more at home as well.
The independent panel will be drawn at the next gm of the lodge, 5 members names out of the hat, totally fair 😉
they have got to be stripped of titles. they should be thrown out of football all together.Could you imagine if it was Celtic ?
martin kennea.Yes i can imagine,we would all be on devils island life sentences,incluuding our family.Paranoid YOU BETTER BELIEVE IT….
I doubt there can be any cover-up, too much info is already in the public domain. Now with the club all but liquidated they can act without truly upsetting all but the moronic element.
Quite why the SFL have refused to carry out similar action on the League cup is another matter entirely…gutless and scared of upsetting their new toy.
I fully expect the titles to be stripped, you don’t start shredding documentation when you have nothing to hide.
Patience bhoys, this is the beginning of the end. Soon the big tax case will announce the guilty verdict, soon the boys in blue- the polis- will start chapping on doors, the tainted titles, cups will be removed. Charlie one suit will sail off into the sunset. They are dead men walking. Bye bye Rangers, bye bye The Rangers, bye bye Sevco, bye bye H*ns. A monumental time to be a Tim. Just enjoy.
when the big tax case is announced and it is guilty then HMRC and BDO will be obliged to go after all those named who received “LOANS” from the EBT scheme and they will have to repay the loans they received – won’t they?
The stigma that will taint their old/new history forever is enough to choke even the biggest Govan mouth. RFC are away, as for te new RFC… who even cares anymore?
Let’s be clear, the HMRC and SFA investigations are two very seperate things. Being found guilty of one does not mean you will be guilty of the other. HMRC might eventually agree the EBTs were legit but that doesn’t stop RFC (IA) being guilty of making payments to players not mentioned in their contracts lodged with the SPL. Also, removing of titles would be a CONSEQUENCE of being found guilty, you would expect some sort of punishment on top of that.
Hi Joe….
My post appeared..and now it’s disappeared….??
Am I banned…?