Campbell Ogilvie was an executive director of Rangers for the first five years of their Employee Benefit Trusts and during their earlier illegally-executed tax avoidance Discount Options Scheme. He received a ‘loan’ from a Rangers EBT, which he has not repaid and is not expected to repay, and recently described his company responsibilities during this period to a friendly journalist as being administrative, and then legislative.
He has been a director of the SFA for 22 years and is now president.
During the period when Ogilvie was director of both Rangers and the SFA the club illegally registered dozens of footballers with the SFA. All directors are responsible for actions of a company, executive directors especially so. Those who represent themselves as having administrative and legislative roles, absolutely so.
SFA chief executive, Stewart Regan, yesterday defended Ogilvie’s shameless refusal to resign by offering a defence which echoed Rangers ‘Craig Whyte acted alone’ defence, which was comprehensively dismissed by the SFA Judicial Tribunal.
Regan said, “We have had very clear feedback that the president was not involved in any letter or correspondence with regards to player EBTs.
“We are all aware of businesses being run where you have one owner and operator running the club and a number of directors sitting below. The way this process has been managed, a lot of this correspondence was done much higher up the chain than Campbell Ogilvie.”
This is cringe-worthy nonsense and gets to the heart of the lack of corporate governance at the SFA. Mr Regan is not qualified to assure us that Mr Ogilvie has no case to answer. That is not a judgement for him to make and is certainly not an inference that can be made on the basis of private comments from Mr Ogilvie or other former Rangers directors similarly contaminated by this issue.
Before the chief executive can state as fact how Rangers conducted their business, and the limited involvement of Mr Ogilvie, some form of inquiry must have taken place. No such inquiry happened.
“We have had very clear feedback”, said Mr Regan. Who is “we”, was it an independent panel that received this feedback, or did Mr Regan deal with this personally? Who gave the feedback? Was Mr Ogilvie subject to the same independent scrutiny as anyone else in the game, from Neil Lennon to Craig Whyte, or was this passed off with a handshake?
Mr Regan’s failure to recognise the serious corporate governance failures in his conduct is alarming. We don’t need this guy to know the offside rule but he has to understand good corporate governance requires questions against your president to be openly and independently investigated.
When these are our standards, what else is the executive turning a blind eye to?
Mr Regan was careful to limit his claim on what Mr Ogilvie was not party to. “We have had very clear feedback that the president was not involved in any letter or correspondence with regards to player EBTs” sounds like a substantial piece of information but it’s not.
This only claims that Mr Ogilvie did not author any side letter or contract relating to an EBT, which is not in doubt. The important issue is clearly Mr Ogilvie knew dozens of players had EBTs, he knew football players’ remuneration is subject to detailed written contracts and he knew all money paid to a player, from any source, in relation to football, must be detailed on his contract and registered with the SFA.
For Rangers players’ EBTs to be consistent with SFA and Fifa requirements they would need to be completely discretionary, an optional extra the players were unable to rely on. Mr Ogilvie, the Great Football Administrator, knew all of this.
Instead of good corporate governance we appear to have a self-certified president – we know Mr Ogilvie did nothing wrong because Mr Ogilvie said he did nothing wrong. He is at once, a Great Football Administrator and unaware of the football administration actions of the company he was legally responsible for.
Ogilvie was an executive director of Rangers. It was his responsibility as a director of Rangers to ensure that the club contracts and legislative responsibilities were conducted in a proper manner. He was simultaneously a director of the SFA. It was his responsibility as a director of the SFA to ensure the Association was run in an even-handed manner, that one club – his club or any other – could not load the dice.
Regan went on to say “Since February 14 he has had no involvement at all in any board meetings, any decisions or any meetings with the club.”
It is reassuring that he has withdrawn from an important part of the legislative process of the SFA but his prominent participation in yesterday’s AGM confirms that his influence in other areas remains.
Regan added “[EBTs] are illegal if they are used knowingly in an incorrect manner. That is something we are still waiting for facts on. But I am satisfied that Campbell has discharged his duty of care. He has done everything we could have asked of him and, so far as his integrity is concerned, he is a man with many years as a highly respected administrator across the game of football in Scotland.”
“So far as his integrity is concerned….many years …. respected administrator”. Those words may bring to mind all those years Ogilvie was at Ibrox while Rangers sectarian signing policy was in place.
Regan dismissed calls for his own resignation, no doubt confident he can self-certify his performance.
I am hugely reluctant to open a political debate, but does the painful lack of accountability and scrutiny in Scotland not alarm you? The actions (inactions) of Ogilvie and Regan would never be accepted in England, where structures exist to hold officials to account. As a relic from Rangers sectarian signing policy days, Ogilvie would be regarded as an embarrassing dinosaur, he would never be made president! The ability for officials to state facts without an inquiry would never be tolerated.
We look more like a rotten borough than a country with the mechanisms necessary to nurture a successful state. Where’s your voice now, Mr Salmond?
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Our best wishes to Myles McBride, who is ill at the moment and father of Sean, who wrote an article in the recent edition of CQN Magazine.
KevJungle, if only it was limited to secret handshakes. We’re deep into incompetence also.
pauloantony, I’m not sure they are sweeping us aside.
I chose not to run with Regan’s comments on Fifa and Rangers court action. This will continue to play out, and I expect it to have grave consequences for Rangers.
What can we do? Stick to clear and irrefutable issues. Try to encourage scrutiny (my point about independence was an attempt to provoke this).
Avocado, I agree.
corrib04, absolutely staggering.
Headtheball, cheers.
tomthelennytim, completely and utterly.
St Martin’s Bhoy, morning.
Patrick27, thanks.
Catman, I’m dismayed at the lack of alarm at Holyrood.
merseycelt, yes, I have!
leftclicktic on 7 June, 2012 at 11:21 said:
Thanks for that! Wasn’t sure of the details myself…
Steinreignedsupreme on 7 June, 2012 at 11:21 said:
Forgive me for asking; what ‘spotlight’ are our board under?
_____________________________
Not at all m8.
The ‘spotlight’ that, the GB put the ‘bored’ under because, like me, the GB were suspicious as to, what way the ‘bored’ would swing in any, New-co vote.
Hopefully thats of some help.
Hail Hail
He shouldne have even got a job with the SFA never mind clinging in there with a brass neck like he has.
The lack of media calling for him to quit or be sacked with the evidence stacked against him is downright embarassing.
Was talking to a Colombian fella at work there and telling him about the corruption in Scottish football, he thought I was making it up….
**Help please**
Does anyone know if we get to the Champions League play off if there’s anything decided about who plays home first, the seeded team or non seeded team?
Trying to plan a visit home around this and go to both games but getting conflicting info on whether its set before the draw or random.
I think our friend Kev, has merely raised the issue of “are the club applying enough pressure in the background”
I don’t think it’s a question that cannot be raised? But perhaps a more relevant question was raised by Pauloantony when he said “what can we as fhans do” to hinder those who seek to help the rats as they “walk away” from the sinking ship
Oldtim
just seen your earlier post. A real shame you are not able to attend today. You will be sorely missed. However, important you get fit and well. Take care auld pal. If you have any fancies….text me.
PAUL67
Arotten borough?
Good analogy.
How about potwallopers? It even sounds like an insult,and it’s fairly accurate too.
Regan’s track record is worth looking into. Failed to get job as a board director at Bass / Coors, had a challenged brief spell at Championship (ask Brian Mahwhinney his views !!) , jumped from frying pan into a disastrous fire at Yorkshire CC…..ask anyone there for their thoughts on his impact ???……Perfect foil for Campbell, who Regan told me 18 months ago, he thinks is a ‘good man’ .
Paul 67
I feel that our fight with the establishment, has never been as strong as it was before the sad passing of, Mr. Paul McBride QC.
And the establishment are acting accordingly.
Hail Hail
Modren alarming corporate governance chasm at SFA is rubbish.
KevJungle – “1st Flag on the JUNGLE roof for LENNON’S LION’S” on 7 June, 2012 at 11:19 said:
hamiltontim on 7 June, 2012 at 11:10 said:
______________________
May God strike me down as I type.
I honestly forgot.
But, then again…maybe you have a vested interest to get the ‘bored’ out of the spotlight ?mmm
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Oh the irony, surely you have your tongue firmly implanted in you cheek if you are claiming that I as opposed to YOU come on here with an agenda :-))))))))))))))))))))))
Paul67
The huns are Scotland. Scotland is the huns.
We are a small minority who unfortunately for the masses, usually have an upbringing which has integrity, morality and a sound education at its core.
All we can do is keep asking the questions they dont want to answer.
We don’t do walking away either…
HH
The Battered Bunnet on 7 June, 2012 at 11:13 said
Great post…. We should maybe all print off and post to Mr Regan because he obviously can’t seem to grasp the situation at all or maybe he does and as somebody else said earlier, hes waiting for the BTC to take it out of his hands. Rotten to the core.
Cmon the celts
We have a governing body can’t stick to its own rules, no wonder the game is Scotland is such a mess. The conflicts of interest of Campbell Ogilvy are mounting up, yet we accept his word that he’s done nothign worng (hmm can we have him showing he’s done soemthing right? After all he’s been company secretary during sectaran signing policies and failures to pay appropriate taxes, but apparently not known about these things. Tell me Campbell, what have you done right?) The SFA thinks its OK for effective self certification to be the order of the day? And this haphazard approach translates to the “fit & proper” test? I’m desperate to sell something, yet I am expected to knock them back based on what? They might have dodgy ideas for skirting tax? Check. They might oversee sectarian policies at the club? Check. They’ll “buy” the club, then charge the club interest on its own purchase price? Check.
FFS. This is beyond farce.
“Dear Marvin,
I confirm that the Board of Rangers Football Club (the Club) will recommend to the Trustees of the Murray Group Management Ltd. Remuneration Trust to include you as protector of a sub-trust, and to fund this sub-trust with net totals as follows…”
Note: THE BOARD OF RANGERS WILL RECOMMEND.
THE BOARD comprising, amongst other, one RC Ogilvie.
KevJungle – “1st Flag on the JUNGLE roof for LENNON’S LION’S” on 7 June, 2012 at 11:26:
Can we take it the Green Brigade are satisfied with how the board are handling the situation?
Paul, never mind “Where’s your voice now, Mr Salmond” where is your voice My Lawell and come to think of it where is the voice of the absentee landlord?
hamiltontim on 7 June, 2012 at 11:31 said:
_______________________________
Hey, you just canny beat an ‘olde – agenda’ IMO :)))))))))))
Hail Hail
I have a few non-Celtic supporting pals in the workplace who I have pointed in the direction of CQN over the weeks and months of this debacle. They are aghast at the mess that is Scottish Football. They made the point of watching the Mark Daly programme and now read Paul’s articles on a daily basis.
They cannot believe what they are reading and believe Scottish fitba to be a lauging stock, particularly now in terms of the way the game is run. If only the governing bodies of UEFA and FIFA thought the same thing…….
paul67
when you did that article on RCOgilvie and regan
did you expect ogilvie to resign or be sacked ?
these numpties running scottish football are all on a good finnancial package and will not give this up at any cost.
each and everyone of them ogilvie,regan and doncaster will not go under any circumstances and who is going to make them leave ?
UEFA ?
FIFA ?
jam67
Paul67:
I’m glad I stayed up to read that. I’m amazed and sickened in equal measure at the ability of highly paid officials to do anything, and nothing disguised as everything, but govern with even a resemblance of integrity.
I’m also disgusted that it has to be you, almost alone but in educated clarion, that shouts the loudest; what purpose the Scottish Press? Are the Scottish Press actually paid to drink and lie? If it were not for you and one or two others then Murray would still be sitting in the blue room dipping the tills of the bank and the public purse.
You could dig in shames pit for a life time but you would never dig deep enough to bury the stench of bias that rises from the SFA. They are reeking.
Steinreignedsupreme on 7 June, 2012 at 11:32 said:
Can we take it the Green Brigade are satisfied with how the board are handling the situation?
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I don’t intend to spark-off a ‘tin helmet’ situation but, I feel that, in the coming weeks the GB, like the rest of us will fel we’ve been DUPED by the ‘bored’ IMO.
Hail Hail
fel=feel
Yawn yawn yawn,,,,please ignore this eejit!!!!
Great article Paul as usual.
What I would like to know is why none of the other Chairmen in the SPL/SFL have spoke out about Ogilvie. Surely they all must see what you see and that Ogilvie’s position is untenable. He clearly new of side payments to players and that this was not passed to SFA.
Why does PL or any other Chair or CEO not call for a vote of No Confidence in Ogilvie. This can be done by calling for an EGM and would if nothing else force the SFA to bring the EBT/ Ogilvie connection to the table and therefore out in the open.
HH
i am gutted at the whole scenario unfolding. Why do i feel that yours, Paul, is the lone voice championing all that is right in football.
If ever a situation needed national, nay international coverage, it is this.
I hope that this injustice pricks the conscience of someone high up the ladder in UEFA but i fear as a small nation, this incident will be lost in the razzamatazz of the upcoming European Championships.
kitalba
I agree with the thrust of your post. However, the reason that Murray is not in charge of Rankers still is because he is a failed business man whose inadequacies were exposed by the (banking) crisis of capitalism!
HH
Off oot.
Things to do, fholk to see.
May God Bless Paul 67 and ‘Every’ CQNer.
Hail Hail
Paul67
I think your assertion that this should be a political football is correct. However, Salmond’s inaction is not a surprise, if anything the comments which he has made in public have compounded the situation and only made the already cloudy waters murkier.
I don’t believe that any amount of pressure brought to ‘bear’ on him would lead to him making any sort of statement other than ‘the fabric of Scottish society’ sort.
Our allies will be found in the corridors of UEFA and FIFA not dingy cupboards in Holyrood.
Paul67 – I have to agree with quite a few posters on here about what do we do next. We need a leader that can stand up against them and give guidance on how we pursue. Originally I thought you would be the best person to take it forward, but given you affiliation with Celtic I think it might be best given to a neutral to avoid the obvious problems.
What about the person who writes the RTC blog? Mind you I think they may have their work cut out as it stands.
Any suggestions?
Another great article Paul, I smell something rotten here, I’ve been
asking for months how Ogilvie was still in place.
Hail! Hail!
Ogilvie, like Peat, Farry etc. were comfortable in the knowledge that they were part of a natural progression. The office bearers for the establishment who were completely at ease with their institutional arrogance. The people who run the game know the writing is on the wall in terms of transparency and needed to step back into the shadows. That doesn’t mean the game has been cleaned up, or that there is even the will for transparency. It just means the old guard got clever. Regan and Doncaster are hand picked puppets, weaklings with no backbone. They do what they are told, until they become utterly ridiculed, they will fall eventually, mocked and discredited. But who will replace them? The more you read and hear, the more you realise how much of a sham the whole thing is.
When international squads arrive for major tournaments, they’re usually greeted by the world’s media, fervent travelling supporters and/or inquisitive locals.
Bizarrely, England were predominantly met by Republic of Ireland fans as they arrived at their Euro 2012 base in Krakow.
The Irish supporters seemed to outnumber English fans in the Polish city, meaning that Roy Hodgson’s men entered their hotel to the strains of “You’ll never beat the Irish” and “Terry is a racist”.
Paul,
A thoroughly excellent article. I’m interested in this bit:
“The way this process has been managed, a lot of this correspondence was done much higher up the chain than Campbell Ogilvie.”
A lot of what correspondence? Has Regan seen this correspondence? Who, other than Ogilvie, could be the source of information about this correspondence? How does Ogilvie know that such correspondence was done “much higher up the chain”, if he doesn’t know the nature of that correspondence? Who was “much higher up the chain” than Ogilvie?
Terrific article, Paul.
Sadly it only emphasises the impotence that we feel as we see such scurrilous machinations.
Could any of our legal men advise me as to whether WE, as people affected by the SFA’s refusal to take the required action, could fund a private challenge to these obvious miscarriages of basic justice ?
I would personally be happy to contribute as much as I can afford to mount a challenge to their abuse.
With the numbers of people who value this great site ( & indeed others ), it should be possible raise the funds to pay for a legal firm to pressure these cheats.
Paul 67,great article.
SFA LIARS
RANGERS LIARS
REGAN EASILY DUPED GULLIBLE PATSY
OGILVIE LIAR
kEV JUNGLE EEJIT
Im not so sure why FIFA/UEFA dealt so strongly with Sion and not with the huns, but I can only conclude that fifa/uefa don’t have the stomach for the fight in this case.
The SFA/SPL clearly don’t.
The only person who will harm (bankrupt) the huns may be hector himself
However the minute that Hector has done the deed we can expect the likes of Doncaster and Regan and Kilmarnock to rush to help the newco into the SPL (for the good of fitba)
Paul67 a good article but I sense you may well be getting more frustrated by the lack of action over the goings on in Scottish football.I have said from the begining that you were looking at what has happened the wrong way you and many others were looking at the rules and expecting the football authorities to act on the breach of those rules.With Rangers it is clear that rules were only there to be bent or broken and Rangers have allways since I started watching football been in control of the Scottish football authorities.The Rangers in administration has not imo been handled in the usual manner I see Kev jungle getting a bit of stick this morning and even you said its more than hand shaking its incompetence.Paul you surprise me there is no incompetence involved here it is a clear plan of action that is being followed by the players in the Scottish game those who are not players you and I and others like us are swept aside.The rules are being bent broken even in order that Rangers shed as much of there debt as possible short changeing the creditors by as much as possible a newco will be formed and it will be business as usual.Dont underestimate the powers you are up against here as the old saying goes keep your friends close to you and your enemies even closer. H.H.