Police Scotland officers visited Sports Direct’s Derbyshire offices “investigating takeovers at Rangers”. The pluralisation is quite important.
Last year Police Scotland opened an investigation into Craig Whyte’s purchase of Rangers from the Duped One, fair enough. No one previously reported that more than one ‘takeover’ was being investigated.
Sports Direct had no involvement with oldco Rangers, whose merchandising relationship was with JJB, so clearly this police action is not connected to Mr Whyte. Sports Direct’s only relationship at Ibrox has been newco Rangers. If newco, who were formed when the assets of oldco were bought in liquidation, is subject to police investigation the potential consequences are far reaching.
Sports Direct were not involved with the asset purchase and were only introduced when the club sought investment and commercial partners, so they played no part in the second takeover (of assets). Their likely interest to police will be limited to being recipients of correspondence.
An asset purchase which was secured by criminal activity, if discovered, is legally invalid. This is different from a purchase which breaks civil law. A civil offence leaves the guilty party open to financial claim. An asset disposal subject to a criminal offence would see the liquidator seize assets on behalf of the creditors. Padlocks would be involved, so would lengthy legal processes.
The bar to securing a criminal conviction for such a matter is high and no evidence of such wrongdoing regarding the disposal of Rangers assets has been verified in three years, so don’t expect Padlock Day anytime soon.
I wouldn’t like to be trying to raise money in this climate, though. Good job the SFA are so thoroughly opposed to letting those with a track record of criminal inclinations controlling football clubs.
Yesterday, Fans Against Criminalisation (FAC) continued their campaign against the truly dreadful law instigated by former First Minister Alex Salmond. Despite a litany of failed convictions and representation from within football and the wider community, the Scottish Government have refused all requests to repeal the three-year-old law.
You can register your voice against this law by petitioning the Scottish Government to Repeal the Offensive Behaviour’ Act by signing this online petition. It is a outrageous, politically motivated, law, designed to “equalise” the law-abiding (that’s you) with actual criminals.
Don’t get me started!
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Happy Birthday Paul 67. Keep up the good fight.
TGCW
If that’s the case, you might be fairly close to 308
If the DUP do hold the balance of power, which I doubt, what terrible thing are they going to do. If the Tories are the largest party they will effectively run the Country and throw a few sops at the buttons holding up their pants. DUP will probably get a Royal visit to Belfast and a few peerships thrown their way but they will have little say on the broad thrust of Government Policy. People have made up their mind the seats will be filled accordingly. The real politics start when the seats are decided if the numbers indicate that Labour & the SNP could form a Government, then regardless of what parties say pre-Election they will reach a deal.
Daryl Murphy being praised by Mick McCarthy as the best player in the Championship.
He is his manager, but 27 goals and 5 assists in 44 appearances is good stuff.
Didn’t work out at Celtic but good luck to him now.
Ipswich play Norwich City in the playoffs.
Murphy versus Hooper.
Mick McCarthy versus Alex Neil.
most unsuccessful clubs in European Cup/CL history …. number 4 might surprise you (not)!
http://talksport.com/football/clubs-have-played-most-often-champions-league-without-winning-trophy-150506145678
have to run … will check in later.
HH
Happy Birthday Mr. President
http://youtu.be/iH3oOVKt0WI
jamesgang
14:47 on 6 May, 2015
The sookiest Podium.
EVER!!!!!
;-)
______________
Hahaha….yer a silver tounged devil. HH big chappie.
Ooops Have a great day Paul67 Hail Hail Hebcelt
‘gg
Get yer tin hat on!
I posted that clip when Big Ya Ya was in the huff about Man City not making enough fuss about his birthday!
A couple of posters got quite exercised about it, as I remember!
And not because they were fans of big Ya Ya!
Remember the UUP and the DUP agreed an electoral pact to increase the unionist seats at Westminster.They won’t field candidates against each other in certain constituencies.
As I said I voted yes in the referendum but believe we’re on the verge of a very right wing government. No one will be happier than myself if I’m wrong.
A very hoppy birthday Paul67
martybhoy59
17:16 on
6 May, 2015
A very hoppy birthday Paul67
………hoppy, as in lots of beer……….?
the b b…
Whit ????!!!!
DCs been in Tory enclaves throughout!
Puzzledcsc
Cork
I think that you underestimate what the DUP will ask for
Of course you are probably ok with loyalists marching along routes that they cherish!
Don’t be surprised if the SNP do a deal with the Tories over Full Fiscal Autonomy after all it was the Tories who kept them in power after 2007 !
The idea that they are anti austerity is rather confounded by their actual record in government – where the IFS have proved that they have spent less on education and the health service than the Coalition and of course have steadfastly refused to increase Council tax or use the power that they already have to increase income tax in Scotland!
The Labour Party has plenty of faults and failings but it is still the only viable option in this election IMHO
HH
Beatbhoy
It’s the shortened pasteurized version.
TBB
I could be wrong but I believe the two seats that UKIP are more likely to win are challenged by the Tories.If UKIP don’t win them chances are they’ll increase the Conservative’s seats at Westminster.Throw the DUP’s,think it’s nine but apologies if I’m wrong, and there belief that they can take another three, then we could have the coalition of dread.
Hope I’m totally wrong but if it does come to fruition then I didn’t contribute to it.
Their.
weeminger
17:02 on 6 May, 2015
‘That’s Ed Miliband saying if being in Govt requires a deal with the SNP he’s not doing it. No mention of them having to compromise, or them having to support him. He’s not doing it. He’d rather not be in Govt.’
###
Why would there have to be a deal with the SNP?
They either vote in support of a Labour government or they let the Tories in.
It’s up to them.
For once the SNP will have to act rather than talk.
And they’ll be unable to shift responsibility onto anyone else.
hebcelt
16:16 on
6 May, 2015
TBB Ernie Jim Murphy? you do him a disservice Ernie is far more devious than Jim. He’d make a better fist of running their campaign. H H Hebcelt
Jim Murphy devious. No. Nay. Never.
Since the election is taking centre stage on the blog today, I will bow out.
I have no strongly held opinions on the outcome, the winners or the losers.
As far as I am concerned they are all a bunch of chancers who have become professional politicians interested more in their personal security than in the well being of their constituents.
It’s time for term limits.
croppybhoy
17:24 on
6 May, 2015
The Labour Party has plenty of faults and failings but it is still the only viable option in this election IMHO
HH
If it is the only viable option, why does it find itself in danger of getting a kicking in a Scotland that has long been its fiefdom?
Just what has happened to all those places in which they wieghed te Labour vote?
Paul67 et al
Let us not forget that that reason we had a coalition in the first case is that Gordon Brown was an unmitigated disaster as both Chancellor and Prime Minister. He may well have two degrees from the University of Edinburgh, but he is unable to understand basic arithmetic. He has left NHS hospitals hamstrung with 30 years of debt, following various PPP and PFI financing. He freed up the Bank of England, created the FSA (run by bankers for bankers), and allowed banks like the RBS and the Bank of Scotland to create money on a scale unseen previously. He helped create both the deficit and the National Debt that the coalition has added to, and now costs over £1 billion a week to service, £55 billion a year, and that is at rock bottom interest rates. £55 billion! And that is despite bailing out the banks, and £375 billion of quantitative easing via the Bank of England. He once told the Guildhall that he wanted to do to the economy what the banks had done to the financial sector, and you know something he did it too! We are all still paying the price of New Labour.
All this talk of the Ulster Unionists reminds me.
There’s a lecture by Peter Hennessy on the BBC Parliament channel about minority governments. He mentioned that Jim Callaghan could have survived the vote of no confidence by the SNP and the Tories if he had been prepared to a deal with the Ulster Unionists, but he wouldn’t.
The Callaghan government was probably the last Old Labour one. The type of Labour government that erstwhile Labour voters get nostalgic about.
It’s worth remembering that it was brought down by the SNP.
GG
Surely if you want a career where you put yourself first and you’re only in it for yourself then the last thing you should do is take on a job in which people can get rid of you in five years?I tend to find the politicians I’ve met work very long hours and are reasonable people.Mind you I’ve met some councillors who I’d hand over to the Gestapo.
quonno
17:38 on 6 May, 2015
What has happened is that there has been a decline in class consciousness which has been replaced by nationalism.
Nationalism appeals to the emotions rather than the intellect and those who adopt it are immune to rationality.
blantyretim is praying for the Knox family
Cheers for the tip will look in to that
Thanks guys for all your good wishes
Hail Hail
MT
RWE
Ipswich play Norwich City in the playoffs.
Murphy versus Hooper.
Mick McCarthy versus Alex Neil.
__________
Looking forward to the Old Farm Match
Ernie – you’re correct if Labour get more seats than the Tories and feel in a strong enough position to go it alone. No deals are necessary and whoever voted with the Tories against Labour (or I’d their abstentions resulted in bills being defeated) might find themselves in a difficult position.
EM has put himself in a position where that is his only option though.
I personally think a Labour minority govt is probably workable if they approach it correctly.
RWE @ 17 07……………Birthday greeting to Paul and go easy on the pints.
Regarding Daryl Murphy who is current top scorer in the Championship he obviously plays in a league where both teams like to attack and he could not hack it against the packed defences in the the SPFL and as you say I hope Mick McCarthy gets Ipswich promoted.
I listen in on Saturday mornings to a very good sports programme hosted by former Irish rugby player Regie Corrigan and snooker has-been Ken Doherty on Sunshine Radio. Both unfortunately worship at the altar of the EPL being Arsenal and Man Utd fans respectively, Celtic never get a mention on this programme.
Paul Byrne a former Celtic player who scored a famous goal for the Hoops in a Cup final has been a guest on the programme in recent weeks and is introduced as a former Celtic star and that’s about as good as it gets and still not a word is spoken about the club as I await in positive anticipation. Paul in fact covers the EPL. A pal of mine recently comes to the conclusion that SKY must pay these radio stations to further the EPL cause. The guy could be right.
Quonno
I see that Ernie has given you an answer that is probably more concise and eloquent that I could muster!
I would add that as I said tha LP has many, many faults both at Westminster and in Scotland
Too many of its leading lights have become far too far removed from the ordinary people that they are meant to represent.
If they get a doing they will deserve it – however those who seek to replace them are no better and in many cases a lot worse!
It is funny to see NS ask for a Tory free Scotland after she worked with them at Holyrood!
As Ernie suggests they constantly appeal to emotion over logic – as their Independence paper conclusively proved!
You don’t hear as much about oil these days do you?
Their refusal to discount another referendum tells you all you need to know about their agenda
Let’s hope people see through their waffle!
Vote Labour – even though you might think that Miliband is a bit of a plonker!
Not a great slogan perhaps but he still represent a better future for ordinary people than anyone else in this election!
HH
On the matter of the referee’s decision in the Semi final.
When are you guys going to wisen up?
Unless you can PROVE McLean and the others saw the handball AND that they chose not to see it for reasons to do with either their allegiance for the other club or bias against Celtic then it’s all a waste of time.
Apart from it reinforcing a suspicion if absolute corruption at the SFA the letter itself was never going to produce anything but the cul de sac that it has.
The SFA know that and hide behind it.
On the other hand if you can prove skullduggery and who took part, well that is a different matter entirely.
A good general picks the battles he can win because those are the battles that can win the war.
ernie lynch
Labour lost the vote of confidence in 1979 by one vote, 310-311. Remind me, how did Gerry Fitt of the SDLP vote? Or how did Frank Maguire, a Irish Republican, vote? Or how did the 1980s work out for the North of Ireland? I think we should be told.
It’s worth remembering that all of the circumstances surrounding the maintenance and demise of the Callaghan government are worth remembering.
His decision not to go to the polls in autumn ’78, after the Liberals withdrew support, was up there with Kennedy’s decision to use the convertible one November morning in 1963.
Celtic Mac
18:01 on 6 May, 2015
I think we can both agree that things in NI would have been so very much better if the SNP had been running the show.
Ernie
Your revisionism betrays you. You’re better than that. Aren’t you?
Croppybhoy
I think they call it Full Fiscal Responsibility now, since the multi-billion black hole in their sums was pointed out.
It allows more room to apportion blame to others when things go wrong.
Maybe the name change is the reason that at least one SNP candidate thinks a tweak of the Barnett formula would sort that out, even though FFA/ FFR would mean the end of that particular source of shared UK funds.
auldheid
Surely the fact that there are two conflicting version of what the officials saw or didn’t see as the case may be should lead to Celtic taking this further .
The Battered Bunnet
18:03 on 6 May, 2015
Yet the fact remains (and it is a fact, not an opinion arrived at with the benefit of hindsight) that it was the SNP who tabled the vote of no confidence.
So the SNP and the Tories brought down a Labour government.