The Upper Tier Tribunal (UTT) sitting on HMRC v Murray International Holdings (MIH) has ordered HMRC’s demand for unpaid tax to be reduced substantially. Claims Sir David Murray Employee Benefit Trust should be taxed were dismissed, but the UTT was not prepared to endorse that guaranteed bonus payments paid to Rangers players should not be taxed.
During the First Tier Tribunal MIH acknowledged tax should have been paid on EBTs given to a further five players, who were removed from the judgement (although the tax was never paid). Lord Nimmo Smith’s SPL Inquiry found Rangers guilty of not disclosing side-letters given to players which contractually bound EBT payments and arrangements. The Inquiry issued Oldco Rangers with a fine of £250,000. Newco Rangers agreed to pay all of Oldco’s football debts as a price to gain entry to the SFA and league structure. It is anticipated this fine will be collected in the event the club reaches top flight football.
Rangers did not dispute they operated an illegal Discount Options Scheme, which was uncovered by Craig Whyte’s investigators, when he carried out due diligence before buying the club from Sir David Murray. Tax due on this scheme was never paid.
Once in control, Whyte continued to operate the club’s tax arrangements in similar ethical standards. He failed to pay VAT, PAYE or National Insurance. Several hundred other creditors were left in the lurch as the club was liquidated.
At its heart, this is a morality tale. The first lesson which should be drawn is that it is far better to disclose your tax arrangements to the authorities than to hide them. When Celtic employed Juninho, who had an earlier EBT, they disclosed this fact and subsequent transactions to HMRC (Celtic never issued rule-breaking side-letters either).
Perhaps the most important lesson is not to allow debt to get out of control. Armed with the Discount Options Scheme and tax not paid on contractually guaranteed bonuses, HMRC were legally bound to pursue the club for money the tax payer was due – and will almost certainly never be paid.
Once that train was in motion, the club was at the mercy of its bank. MIH held substantial commercial property assets at this time, when the UK commercial property market took an average 45% nosedive. Then the bank itself (HBOS) was sold, exposing legacy arrangements to full commercial scrutiny.
Even then, even then, Rangers could have used the bonus of Champions League income to either rapidly pay-down their bank debt, or retain as a hedge against the consequences of the on-going tax dispute. Instead Walter Smith returned to the transfer market, spending what he could to keep his nose in front of Celtic.
This was an arrogant and fatal mistake.
When Whyte put his £1 on the table there was nothing the Independent Board Committee could do to dissuade Sir David from selling, but by then all the cards had been played, an insolvency event was on the horizon unless someone coughed up £18m to repay the overdraft, and no one was prepared to do this.
In the unedifying final days the club was reduced to turning, cap in hand, to lifelong adversaries to ask for rule changes which never arrived.
Despite all of this, humility among this lot is scarcer than a fully paid up tax receipt.
It took dozens of people working to promote Rangers on-field activities to kill the club. Those who failed to disclose side-letters, those who allowed debt to get out of control, those who sat on boards which endorsed Smith’s spending knowing the potential consequences, those who campaigned against the people who disclosed Whyte’s background, were all necessary for this outcome. Their reputations are now co-dependent
Celtic fans, HMRC nor the SFA killed Rangers. None of them* knew about the Discount Options Scheme, the undisclosed side-letters, the unpaid VAT, PAYE or NI bills. None of them decided to spend more than was prudently possible.
Killing Rangers was an inside job. The biggest rivalry in football is gone; we won, by an avalanche of own goals.
*apart from SFA president Campbell Ogilvie, who knew exactly what was going on.
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voguepunter
Done did that many a time. Painful!!
Burghbhoy
at , 22.12.
Hiya,pally.. Nice tae Chat.
Yes.. unfortunately..Ye understaun.. Perfectly..
That,,
Celtic’s In Coming Transfer Funds..as Ever…shall
be Slated tae … NO SPENT.
n.. A Policy.. of which…Kojo.. Heartily Approves!
Which Policy?
Why the Wan…Which Dictates…
That Any Monies Collected by Celtic.. fur the Sale of the Big Yin.. ( or Anybuddy Else~)
Wull be immediately…
Imprisoned… in the Big Parkheid Piggy Bank.. which .. D.D. hides.. Below his Bed.
N,Which.. Ah muss confess..as Ah Already stated…
Am …Stroangly.. In Favor.
fur..
Money, is Meant tae be used ONLY… In an Emergency..by Celtic.
Like.. Fur the Light Bill.. The Gas Bill.. Moustache Wax, fur .. D.D…. n… Making Sure that The Parkheid Commissary
is weel stocked.. Wi’…. Tunnock’s Wafers.
Ye Know..only the Necessities…
Right?
Of Course ,Ah am Right,, Ah Alwiz am~~~~
Yes,palomine..
You Are Correct in this..as usual…
Celtic , wull Put thur Faith in .. Witnessing a Miraculous Come-Back by Mr. Gordon.
( which,secretly..
Ah wid No Be Surprised if ..it turned oot at Be ,that..
Celtic’s Faith ,in witnessing THAT Miracle.. may NOT be ill-Founded)
NIce Chattin’ Pal.. as evah..
Kojo
Still,Laughin’
D D
Good man.
Netherlands 1st penalty was saved but it may still have crossed the line @SkySportsNews #WORLDCUP #WorldCup2014 http://t.co/WeyHYVcPfB
There will be different angles of the penalty
D D
Johnston stable on “fire” just now. He’ll have few at Hamilton next week. Always got a turn off him when I was punting!!
Sons of Struth 0 @AngelaHaggerty 1 #BBC
B B
What was the scores tonight?
BBC began by saying was it right to strip Rangers of trophies. What have ‘I’ missed?
B B
Was that a goal??
Delaneys Dunky
Its further along Dumbarton Road towards the Yoker Ferry.
JUDE2005
Not a great ale fan,but Hobgoblin is superb.
At 99p,I’ll be round there in the morning,tyvm.
Well done Angela Haggerty!
A simple statements of FACTS made the SOS rep look hunnish,but surely the male reporter(Wilson?)needs to get lessons on impartiality still peddling myth on demotion.
Jude-was 1st Pen i think but…
Just leaving pub …..and a Herald Sport from 5th July was there,Hugh MacDonald’s article on Wimbledon was brilliant;if embdae can post it ta
Just had a chat with a sevco mate of mine. He’s always been level headed and rational guy but my god, the crap he came out with was, well, shocking.
Everyone is to blame, from CW to lloyds to Turnbull Hutton to Dundee Utd to Peter Lawwell. No SDM, no Walt, no EBT’s.
They seem to have entered a fantasy world where no man has ever gone.
The hurt and shame must be that acute.
rwe, aye, ‘Party down at the square’ a particularly upsetting account. Think he (rwe) was only about 12 years old or so at the time. Man’s inhumanity right enough. The other issue; will keep in touch with MG but the initial signs are positive. Cannot make any promises though at this juncture but God willing, it will transpire as hoped… Flying back to SE Asia on Monday but the co-ordination will be in good and passionate hands… Take care and say hello to Tony… Regards & Hail Hail… TBM
bbc newsnight scotland
went somthing like “was it right to strip the huns of trophies and relegetde to the third division”
and mock the week had just finished or had it
if there is a yes vote i hope the whole station implodes up its hun/tcheuchtar ar53hol3.
Whit wull Ronny Dee’s Team Selection ,fur the Morra Be?
As ye Know, or..Mebbe.. Ye Don’t Know..
Tomorow’s, Team Selection wull be.. the wan tae face the Ice Men… or.. it wull be
a very Similar wan.
If Ronny , Wiz Me..n.. Ah wiz.. well.. KING..
The Celtic Team Selection, fur… the Morra .. Wid Be..
Gordon,
Lustig ..Izzy
Ambrose ..Virgil.
KAYAL.. Biton.. Steffi, Charlie, Commons
Lee/Pukki.
( Am oan the Hoarns of A Dilemma.. Here..
Ah Canny Pick a Choice Between..
Lee n Pukki.. concerning, which wan,of the Two.. SHOULD Be the Lonely Linwood Leader.)
Noo .. Ye Know.
Kojo,
Still,Laughin’
Kojo
Still,Laughin’
I’m listening to question time tonight. You have the intellectual piggy miles of Joan Byrne ( god help us) and Ricky Ross (a physdo intellectual without any concept of supply and demand). It’s bloody embarrassing for you yes campaigners.
Night all Night wee Oscar my hero. God bless x
neganon2
23:05 on 10 July, 2014
Undecided, do you think Hastings or the multi millionaire from Orion group are any better ? I don’t
Question time a genuine embarrassment thanks to daft audience members and bloody Joan Byrne. Is that as the yes campaigners want. Fecking Joan bornite telling us what to do. She is an idiot without the savant.
This is a pathetic so called debate.
Neganon2 and Scott Hastings and Alan Savage are giving them a mauling????? Hail Hail Hebcelt
BMCUWP
I think it was 99p. might have been the stuff above or below. I always get mixed up with all them labels and stickers Agree with you its very good!!!
MARRAKESH EXPRESS
Masty may have the answer for you when confronted with their piss and wind.
Cowiebhoy no you are right who the hell chose this panel of, dare I say it, diddies?
Hen let agreed. This is the lowest quality news night I have ever seen. Including the audience!!!!!
That’s some panel on Question Time right now. Scott Hastings, Ricky Ross, Joan Burney and the heid bummer of Orion group.
Just waiting for a question for Joan from a guy wi a knob shaped like a turnip.
benjybhoy mul
Sympathy for loss of your dad. RIP
Joan Byrne now speaking as an agony aunt. For fecks sake…….is this the best we have to offer??????
Neganon2 surprised your badly put comments you are usually better than this. Btw it’s Question Time not a “pathetic so called debate” You may think it is pathetic – your entitled to that view, just switch it off or change channel. Good to talk Hail Hail Hebcelt
Is Savage from Orion group not on Inverness or Ross County board ?
Neganon
“an idiot without the savant”
:)))))
Referendumb?
Ricky Ross now making peodophelia an independence issues what an absolute dickhead.
Neg
Hastings and Savage are pathetic, esp Hastings the settler.
Joan Burnie………….?????
Her “Why The Mantilla” question sticks in the mind…….
bitter, nippy sweetie.
Benjybhoy mul
I am truely sorry for your loss
YNWA