Neil Doncaster is in for a grilling from SPFL board members for mentioning Rangers in his letter to the SFA about investigating tax cheating!
According to a report in the Daily Record board members, including Anne Budge and Stewart Robertson, are unhappy that they have been associated with a request into actions surrounding the Ibrox club who went into liquidation in June 2012 and disappeared from the football scene.
The request for an investigation has no impact on the Sevco tribute act.
Reporting on the issue the Record claims: “The SPFL board met to discuss the aftermath of the Supreme Court verdict in July that ruled EBTs were taxable income, bringing an end to a long-running dispute between Rangers and HMRC.
“Ibrox managing director Stewart Robertson is also a member of the SPFL board but was not allowed to take part in discussions and played no part in the decision taken by his colleagues.
“In the end they agreed a review of processes aimed at avoiding future financial traumas among Scottish clubs as well as how such events would be handled in future would be beneficial.
“Significantly, however, the SPFL board made it clear any such review must not focus on Rangers and its use of EBTs that ultimately led to its financial collapse in 2012.”
Last week Stewart Regan announced that the SFA wouldn’t be reviewing the circumstances of Rangers going into administration and liquidation but that they had referred the 2011 UEFA licence to their in-house Compliance Officer.
It has also emerged that HMRC served a Schedule 36 order on the SFA in 2009 to gain access to the contracts registered.
After the SFA leaked a letter sent by Celtic in 2012 hoops chief Peter Lawwell published the full correspondence between the club and the SFA.
At the heart of the matter is the SFAs decision not to apply any punishment to a club that fielded ineligible players for over a decade.
Albion Rovers, Spartans and East Stirling have all been booted out of cup competitions for fielding ineligible players. By not registering full details of payments being made to players, as confirmed by the Supreme Court in July, Rangers (IL) were guilty of fielding ineligible players.
When he returned from Blackburn in 2006 Rangers registered a contract worth £8,600/week which was less than a third of his previous contract. Ferguson’s wages were made up by EBT payments of £2.5m.
