I see a bit of debate on the blog this morning on Lord Nimmo Smith’s SPL Commission, which has retired to prepare its report. In March last year former Rangers owner, Sir David Murray, insisted no Rangers players had “side contracts”, inferring there was no case to answer. This line has not been peddled since. Instead, various excuses are offered in mitigation.
BBC’s award winning The Men Who Sold the Jerseys documentary established that a large number of players received money in connection with playing football which was not recorded with the SPL and SFA. Even Rangers counsel at the First Tier Tribunal conceded tax should have been paid on five of these players.
The real issue for Nimmo Smith is how to impose an appropriate punishment for illegal registration on this scale, which is consistent with punishments recently handed out to Spartans, Dunfermline and others, all of whom were kicked out of competitions, and fined up to a quarter of their annual income, for offences relating to single games.
For a couple of years now we have discussed the toxicity of matters surrounding the Rangers group of clubs. Actions carried out during the Murray and Whyte eras put Rangers into liquidation with vast governance issues plaguing the game and the new club which inherited their player registrations.
On the assumption the SPL Commission concludes Rangers were guilty of fielding illegally registered players in hundreds of games, what would an appropriate punishment be? Forget about stripping titles, or reclaiming prize money, both of which are merely consequences of the facts being established, not punishments.
I have total confidence Nimmo Smith will submit a report beyond reproach on whether Rangers broke the rules, but would he send for a Black Cap before handing out a sentence? I’m not so sure. Spartans and the rest might feel their 25% annual income fine for a single-match offence might become an embarrassment to some of the game’s administrators.
“Without fear or favour” was what we were promised last year. Let’s see.
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miki67
All my best wishes
Hail Hail
Celtic_First, Sevco should take the wrap for Rangers as they inherited Rangers association membership, without which, and without three years accounts, they would be ineligible to become even associate members.
This messy compromise benefited Sevco enormously (a valuation of circa £60m is being touted for them). This matter is in the liabilities column.
The Token Tim
I’ve only seen people claim that, no document. The ‘document’ that Daryl Broadfoot ‘wrote’ following the July 27 meeting makes no mention of that. It just says how magic all parties were in the meeting, how much they all love each other and how great it is that the whole of Scottish football can move on.
Fav Uncle:
http://www.celticquicknews.co.uk/?p=11666&cpage=13#comment-1727649
miki 67
I enjoy your posts. All the best to you.
BMCUP @ 1309,
ha ha ha how very apt.
And that was just me after my one forkfull :-)
My body just shook at the memory of the inferno that engulfed my gullet and stomach from that one measly forkfull…….
Personally i would advocate no drink for you, if you are going to insist on such madness once more in a restaurant after few ales. Well more than a few, but why be pedantic about it?
HAIL! HAIL!
Token
I note that the Free Church of Scotland has requested that it no longer be referred to as “Wee Frees”, on account of the fact that while it’s certainly Free, it’s really not that wee at at all.
Elsewhere, many will consider, should Nimmo Smith confirm the suspicion that Rangers fielded dozens of ineligible players over many years as a consequence of a strategy to gain a competitive advantage on the field, that the breaches of Trust and Duties by those who held Directorships with both the Club and the Football Authorities are amongst the greatest issues in the whole shameful story.
Paul 67
Good answer. But Sevco have never admitted this and I don’t think the SFL, the SFA or the SPL have either. The July 27 meeting was private. They issued the pathetic joint press-release an hour before the London Olympics opening ceremony and have not, to my knowledge, answered any on-the-record questions aimed at clarifying.
Mon the bampots.
BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS – It was NOT a UK problem.
True. It’s wasn’t just a UK problem. Our last two governments sure have been determined to keep housing expensive though. They’ve learned nothing.
The USA was the root of it,simply because of the sheer size of their economy. With all that money sloshing around,which had to go somewhere,loans for ever-more expensive housing to deadbeats skewed everything.
As these things tend to go, the US roots of the housing bubble were all very well intentioned. From Clinton to Bush, successive US government sought to strong arm lenders into approving more mortgages to minorities, who were traditionally less likely to qualify due to their credit ratings. Of course, you can’t just lower credit standards for black or brown people on low incomes, you have to lower them for everybody. Then Alan Greenspan turned on the money hose when the US economy looked like going into mild recession in late 2001. Suddenly people with no income, jobs, or assets were being tossed mortgage approvals as if they were sweeties, and CDO’s established an elaborate game of financial pass-the-parcel to keep the party going far longer than it otherwise would have.
The US has since allowed its housing market to reset though. British governments have done everything within their power to try to prevent prices falling to market clearing levels. They haven’t been wholly successful, but the unintended side effects are that inflation is building a dangerous head of steam and the pound is currently dropping like a stone, immediately making all of us poorer, while young people still can’t afford to get out of the rental sector.
Politicos used to get hanged or defenestrated for far less.
In years to come,people will look back on the first few years of this century and ask how people could be so stupid,same as we do with the tulip bulbs.
When you look at the sort of people we have in high public office and running the media, we are as a society considerably stupider than 17th century Holland. Our elites no longer care to think. Mouthing the right politically correct platitudes is more important. There is no longer a direct link between the words used by our political elites and reality. There’s no long term thinking.
David Cameron goes to Europe, agrees to give them more of our money, then comes back and says it’s a victory. Ed Miliband pushes through the 2008 Climate Change Act, which will impoverish nearly every man, woman, and child in this country if we continue to adhere to it, and barely anyone in the political or media class bats an eyelid. Nick Clegg cries and lies a lot, then snivels and whinges, and yet somehow he is still our Deputy PM.
I’m not often discombobulated, but I nearly choked on my e-lite when I recently heard BBC Radio 2 describing Chris Huhne as a “big hitter”. They’re living in their own bubble, one even stranger than the housing bubble. (thumbsup)
Miki67
Good luck. Fight the good fight and win.
Many thanks to all of you.
HH!
Still want sevco to be buried facedown.
: > )
One reason people invest in property is they see no other profitable place for their money.
The property market in Scotland, with 3 exceptions, is in decline. I expect prices to drop 30% over the next 3 years. The recent changes to housing benefit will accelerate that process. As will repossessions, which are now happening at the high end.
miki67
just arrived home from a family funeral and feeling lower on hearing your news. Be strong and take care.
HH
Celtic Football Club @celticfc
NL: Rogne has been offered a contract but it has been refused. We may go back to him with another offer but no guarantees on that. (LB)
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@miki67
I don’t comment much these days but just had to offer you my prayers and best wishes. I sincerely hope the great faith you put in the doctors and the treatment brings good results. Take care.
H H
Any smart phone bhoys out there with an app called tunein radio
Search on it for fenian radio if you enjoy some songs of resistance .
Let the people sing
philvisreturns
12:42 on 22 February, 2013
‘Opaque financial products are hard for simple creatures like Chancellors of the Exchequer who don’t know what the business cycle is to understand, houses becoming rapidly more expensive isn’t.’
I think the rot set in when chancellors stopped smoking and therefore no longer had a box of matches handy to help them understand what was going on.
Auldheid might I add that the tight little circle who run Scottish football and swap jobs every few years has to be broken. The sabbaticals they take with UEFA/FIFA have to be stopped.
This as all of a one with the wider cabal of highly paid people who now run the UK and appoint and bolster each other.
Me personally, I don’t know how we can reasonably expect the current new all cleansed and shiny sevconians to pay the penalty for the old deid huns actions. They are two different entities, one is bankrupted and closed down, the other is a 9 month old football club in the fourth tier.
So since the old deid huns have no cash or assets left then the appropriate penalty might be to remove the titles rather than financial penalties to a deid club who can’t pay anything. I say remove rather than re allocate. However I guess Paul is hinting that part of the deal to allow sevco into the 4th tier might involved this issue.. Transparency anyone?
However, having said that, I still expect someone somewhere who is working on behalf of the creditors, to establish how Green was able to buy Ibrox at a Knockdown price. Ibrox should have been sold and the money given to the creditors. I don’t understand why this didn’t happen.
Anyway according to the redtops today chuck and Murray are two best pals and are going oot furra a curry and a swallay this weekend on the razzle. The rags never did say what the original problem was, and hinted that Murray had behaved out of order somewhere along the way and that chuckleberry was putting him in his place. Aye well mibbees…
On the positive side I guess it’s fair to say that the MSM nearly broke a story.
About two years ago, the MSM were calling for a knighthood for sir wally of cardigan, now I see they are wanting a special medal for fat Sally, because he managed to win the 4th tier league with the 2nd highest wage bill in the country and a team full of internationalists. After all he has firmly slapped down those division 4 upstarts and put their 250 rival fans in their rightful place. If ever there was a guy in Scottish fitba who deserved a medal for achieving something this season, cant help but think it might not be sally.
More disappointingly, we can see the MSM again acting as facilitators in the demonization of Lenny. How low will the MSM allow themselves to go, we see it creeping back into every phone in and hotline. Does that mean that their denial is now being replaced by anger.
Question. Would you celebrate a 4th tier title win. Probably as much as I would celebrate beating minnows at any time.
Ntassoolla
Also known as the gravy train.
Nice work if you can get it.
PHILVISRETURNS 1319
“. British governments have done everything within their power to try to prevent prices falling to market clearing levels. They haven’t been wholly successful, but the unintended side effects are that inflation is building a dangerous head of steam and the pound is currently dropping like a stone, immediately making all of us poorer, while young people still can’t afford to get out of the rental sector.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
With respect,Philvis,I doubt this is unintended. IMO,the intention is firstly to rebalance the books via inflation-inflate away the debt,if you like-and secondly to devalue like mad-as a sovereign nation can.
The problem with the second is that they devaluing a currency of a country which is a net importer!!!!
Now,I admit to finding the first intention difficult to understand,but the second one just seems like bloody madness……..
Oh,and an article appeared about much the same in today’s Telegraph.
It would make you weep.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financialcrisis/9886000/The-Bank-of-England-cant-just-go-on-doing-down-the-pound.html
philvis
I’m not often discombobulated, but I nearly choked on my e-lite when I recently heard BBC Radio 2 describing Chris Huhne as a “big hitter”. They’re living in their own bubble, one even stranger than the housing bubble. (thumbsup).
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
I was surprised to see that you are an ‘e-lite mhan.’ I envisaged you more as a ‘Passing Cloud’ smoker. Do they still make them?
Anyway – would you recommend e-lites? I am giving serious consideration to trying them.
Am currently on ‘Winston one’.
HH!!
laird of the smiles.many thanks.
miki67
thoughts are with you.
miki67
I didn’t see your original posts but gleaned a bit from references to them and just read your comment on pg1.
Stay positive, loads of positive energy for you here. It’s quite close to my heart as my Dad has just been diagnosed with lung cancer. As yet we know little more.
All the best to you on the road ahead.
ERNIE LYNCH 1328
Kenneth Clarke smoked like a chimney-or did he only start when he took up that lucrative post with BAT?
I think we should be told……
Miki67
My thoughts, prayers and best wishes are with you.
I’m Neil Lennon (tamrabam) @13:30 as far as re-allocation of trophies is concerned let’s judge the huns by their own standards.
In their grievance against Marseille they devised a tortuous logic that says they made it the semis. By this token they can be erased and other teams instated in their place.
Sparkleghirl
All the best to your dad too.
It must be a big worry for you.
Auldheid,
I’m with you on all of your points, I actually have a “sensible” friend of the Sevco persuasion who believes they will need at least 3 share issues to see them through to next season and beyond.
Therefore, an expulsion & asset sale would maybe not be the worst case scenario for Mr Green.
Skål
BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS
13:36 on 22 February, 2013
‘ERNIE LYNCH 1328
Kenneth Clarke smoked like a chimney’
Probably used a lighter.
He likes jazz and wears Hush Puppies, so he’s just the sort to use a lighter.
Philvis
Deepest condolences on this latest podium second place, to take a positive from it, its not as embarrassing as HT beating you to it.
Celtic_First – thanks. I feel bad not being there but all my siblings still live close by. Will hopefully know more in the next week or two.
Celtic_First @13:32 points out “Ntassoolla
Also known as the gravy train.
Nice work if you can get it.”
That’s true CF. Problem is it’s being done with money borrowed in our name.
This takes a while to load but do your self a favour and give turnbull Hutton a listen.
Bribes, blackmail, help huns, integrity, before reconstruction.
Its a meeting with fans group and TH goes through point by point the benefits to his club of 12 12 18,and gives a breakdown of the finances involved , and answers questions from fans .I lasts about an hour so maybe keep for later.
Phil MacGiollaBhain@Pmacgiollabhain
http://www.raithrovers.info/2013/02/open_meeting.mp3 …
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Miki67 my day has been brightened by you posting today :))
FavouriteUncle
I think it was 13 @01.10 on 22 Feb.
C2
Burgas Hoops
So you castigate Burns for being a “Tax Collector” and a dirty masonic ……
Is the former such a bad occupation….one needs taxes to pay for public goods or do you think it was right that the dearly departed Rangers should have tried to avoid paying taxes?
Burns was indeed a Mason and whilst I have no truck with secret societies, of its time the masons served Burns well without which it is unlikely his poems would have been published. Furthermore there is a masonic lodge in the Vatican called P2…never heard of it? I also know of a Grand Master of a Stirlingshire Masonic Lodge that is a very committed Celtic fan pays for three season tickets for himself and his sons. I have yet to ask him if he sings “Who’s the Mason in the Black?” I don’t think he should because if anybody should know he should.
Burns was at heart a republican, humanist…we all have to have jobs to keep body and soul together.
Sparkleghirl
You’re in a good place to provide your dad with an excellent change-of-scene when he feels ready and able. You’ll be of great help help to him too, I’m sure.