Neil Doncaster has revealed that the dates of the Nimmo Smith Enquiry into dual contracts at Rangers (IL) were changed because the Ibrox club wouldn’t give them the documentation!
When the enquiry was announced the enquiry was to review all contracts from July 1998 when the SPL started.
All football contracts were copied into the SFA and SPL but the Ibrox club elected to withhold details of Discount Options Scheme payments and Employment Benefit Trusts to dozens of players.
Ronald de Boer and Tore Andre Flo were the first to benefit from that scam with Rangers (IL) admitting their guilt to HMRC through the Wee Tax Case which most certainly wasn’t available to other compliant member clubs.
De Boer signed in September 2000 and Flo two months later with Rangers through Duff & Phelps refusing to hand over the documentation relating to both contracts.
Reporting on their meeting with Neil Doncaster and Rod McKenzie, Celtic Underground reports: “ The SPL set up an investigation from 1 July 1998; this was not the initial advertised date of the LNS Commission.
“McKenzie carried out the investigation but Rangers failed to provide documents asked for prior to November 2000, so he could only address the subsequent period to LNS.
“The administrators of Rangers said the earlier documents were held by Murray Group and that they were unable to acquire them. McKenzie prevaricated when asked what steps he took to acquire the documents.”
When a sportsman fails to take a drugs test they get banned. Ask Rio Ferdinand.
Duff & Phelps couldn’t provide the documentation for two cases of illegal payments made to employees because they knew the consequences.
If HMRC had asked for the documents they would have been produced.
Duff & Phelps produced the documents that allowed Nimmo Smith to produce the report requested by the football authorities.
The real issues were avoided, Sandy Bryson’s incredible registration interpretation was accepted without questioning.
Throughout the report about the meeting the SPL and SFA get the blame for those difficult to answer questions.
Rather than go through the motions of the Nimmo Smith enquiry the SPL could have saved time and money by just asking Duff & Phelps for a self certified report to complete the whitewash.
CLICK HERE for the full report on the meeting.
