Let’s be clear from the off, Craig Whyte is not your friend. He was not the man who “murdered” Rangers any more than Alasdair Johnston, his accuser, who was paid to ensure the club was run in an appropriate manner in the years prior to its crash into liquidation.
If Whyte has your job, your pension or your wellbeing in his hands, you would likely fair no better than those who have had the misfortune to be vulnerable to his exploitative nature before. He is the worst manifestation of our corporate system.
As yesterday’s verdict at Glasgow High Court established, he was merely a collaborative player in the drama which saw Murray Group shed its liabilities to Rangers fans into an all-too certain, and limited, future.
The SFA were right to quickly fine and sine die Whyte, despite the fact that he has no inclination to become involved in football again. What the Association must now do is examine the role of those who had explicit and executive oversight responsibility of managing Rangers through the process of its decline and sale to a character with a lengthy corporate irresponsibility charge sheet.
Whyte was not in any way a bad choice for the job required at Rangers. For those with most to gain, he was the perfect choice. He was, in fact, the only choice, if the desired result was to be delivered – and it was.
No one else would have had the stomach to pick up a corporate basket case, manoeuvring bank debt, securitising years of ticket sales, brazingly stiffing public service funding, and in doing so, freeing Murray Group from a disabling liability.
What do I care? I predicted, then watched, Rangers inevitable crash into administration and liquidation. Patience and thick skin was all that was required through the years of bravado from Ibrox. Those who shouted down the glaringly obvious in support of these charlatans have been shown up as malleable accomplices.
There is one outstanding matter I do care about. In my opinion, Sir David Murray did not discharge his duties as the ultimate controlling director of Rangers FC in a responsible manner. If there is one issue which every Scottish football fan can unite on, it is surely this.
The deplorable sequence of events at that club, from it’s exploitation of the Employee Benefit Trust scheme to pay millionaires tax free sums through a system which was designed to allow employers to aid staff through periods of hardship.
To its submissions to the SFA on taxable overdue. To the shredding of correspondence, and failure to disclose other correspondence.
Rangers were a huge influence on our game; on the SFA, the SPL, the media, and more. The executives concerned had placemen who protected them. The SFA must now charge those responsible for bringing the game into disrepute.
More sine die punishments would mean little to men who are already finished with the game, but it would be a hugely significant act of faith towards the paying public, of all colours. It is time for us all to unite against the men who really did sell the jerseys.
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Yep.
What we need is the Venezuelan model.
:-)
—–
What’s her name?
TTR.
Senga.
And people will still vote for him…
https://youtu.be/UUYbxLri_Og
…f&*king deary me. ;(
He’ll help keep us safe though.You know,from all those foreigny and Islamy types who are the root of all our problems and not the thieving,duplicitous,lying bankers lapdogs and their cronies.
Not a regular poster for various reasons & not up to date with previous comments so forgive me if this has been mentioned/rubbished before.
After reading the res12 stuff there, the thing that jumps out most is UEFA requiring any questions to be asked by a member club. Is it worth trying to get another club to do it if ours won’t?
Perhaps there are sympathisers (not necessarily in this country) who’s fans have might have suffered from similar activities but don’t have access to the time/skills/funding that the res12 guys have provided. Perhaps they may be craving such a ‘silver bullet’ of a package of evidence in order to set a precedent for their own means.
Finally, and correct me if I’m wrong, but would Sevco – being the same clumpany (?) – not be subject to sanctions for their part in this? If so, whether it be in the form of heavy fines or UEFA competition bans, then surely the club with the biggest incentive would be Aberdeen? Afterall, their fans like to tell us the hate them more than we do, so handing them the chance to prove it & potentially put further distance between them & Sevco by putting pressure on their board would seem worth a shot.
Diane
Shadow home secretary .
Jeremy`s sidekick.
Dumped on the eve of the election.
If you can`t run your party , you can`t run the government.
Too painful to watch.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lbTIvXN_lcE
England now 2-1 up and deservedly so
Celtic Elections ..
The only Election that will ever matter to me, is when all
Celtic Supporter Members get an “Equal Vote” in Celtic Elections ..
Equal Votes .. For All Celtic Supporter Members ..
Celtic 1 Member 1 Vote ..
Interesting that Celtic Season Ticket Holders have put in
over £500 million so far, yet Don’t have a vote ..
Lindsell Train have put in nothing, but chose to buy
approx £10 million of shares, and have 15% Voting Share ..
Or to put it another way, Celtic Supporters have paid over
£500 Million just to rent seats at Celtic Park ..
Lindsell Train have paid approx £10 Million to actually own
approx 15% of the seats at Celtic Park, which would actually
equate to them owning all the seats in the Main Stand.
Can you imagine “A Democratic Celtic Supporters Membership”
being messed about by the pricks at the SFA ..
The cheats at Hampden wouldn’t last a second ..
Maybe one day, all Celtic Supporter Members, will finally get
an Equal Vote, in a Celtic Election ..
I live in hope ..
Jeezo, those Vanguard Bears sure have a chip on their shoulder, personally I think they are insane.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
All Aboard The Rangers Circus
Written by: 1972
Wednesday, 7th June 2017
Once again, the Rangers circus has rolled in to town, and while the football side of the business appears to be promising (more of that later), the Craig Whyte saga has exploded, with him being found Not Guilty of the fraud charges brought before him.
It would appear that the case failed not because Craig Whyte didn’t use Ticketus money secured against Season Ticket income to fund his takeover but because the fraud charges were shambolic.
As Whyte’s QC, Donald Findlay’s defence was that in the transaction itself David Murray was not a victim of fraud, and essentially it was this argument that settled the case
Ultimately, while Rangers fans are angry at Whyte and his cronies, Murray, and Lloyds bank for an arrangement that benefited these parties, and set the business on the road to Administration, the real issue here is that corporate law across the UK is not fit for purpose.
The shenanigans before and after Administration, where Mike Ashley, Charles Green and co join in the shafting game just points to vulnerable businesses in the UK not being protected from the corporate vultures that inhabit this world.
There are a number of individuals who have raped and pillaged their way through the accounts of various businesses associated to the club, from those above to their associates and hangers on, but the real villains of the piece are David Murray, Ian Shanks at Lloyds Bank, and HMRC, who engineered the club to its position of vulnerability for Whyte, Green, Ashley and others to pillage.
Amidst all the noise we should remember;
– Rangers £18M debt to Lloyds Bank was not a large debt, and the club was already operating its own austerity measures from around 2007 in order to reduce that debt, which had been driven down from £30M to £18M
– Rangers debt was manageable prior to the takeover
– The Murray International Debt to Lloyds was in the hundreds of millions, and Lloyds wished Murray to sell off several businesses to reduce his debt
– Lloyds had place-people on the Rangers board, as did Murray from his corporate business
– HMRC retrospectively ruled on EBTs in 2011, then hounded Rangers for a retrospective amount that amounted to a fine they had concocted, rather than the value of the tax the believed owed based upon the sums deposited in to the Trust. Of course that ‘big tax case’ is still rumbling on, with a Supreme Court judgement imminent on the last appeal against the First Tier Tribunal Judgement. This sum required by HMRC, which appeared to jump from £34M to £48M for no apparent reason ended up as a debt on the books of the operating business
– HMRC had been working on EBT Legislation since 2003, with former Celtic Chairman John Reid Home Secretary in 2006. Celtic’s use of EBTs, from 2005, pre-dated Mr Reid becoming Home Secretary. Reid became Celtic Chairman in 2007, while still a serving Labour Cabinet Minister. Reid succeeded Brian Quinn, the former Governor of the Bank of England
– HMRC refused to do any deal for any sum with either Murray or Whyte, despite doing so with other firms
– Whyte appears to have believed that he would be able to enter the business in to Administration, with no impact to the football club, but didn’t reckon on a] Charles Green (or whoever he was representing) shafting him, and b] the SPL and SFA trying to kill the club
– The SFA and SPL colluded with each other to punish Rangers as a club, when the basis of that punishment was the club being ripped apart due to the factors above.
– The impact of all of the above, has cost
* 5 years European competition revenue (15-100M)
* Loss of Player Assets (30M)
* Loss of Commercial Revenue (Kit Manufacturer, Shirt Sponsor, TV Revenue, Retail Deal over 5 years) (40M)
* BDO on behalf of the Rangers operating business Oldco have already had a ruling in their favour that Whyte’s law representative Collyer Bristow misrepresented Whyte’s funds. The resulting fine of £24M went to BDO not the football club
– Ticketus were not strictly a creditor of Rangers as Whyte owed them the cash, which a court ruled in 2013 he should pay ‘“ not Rangers FC PLC
– As a direct result of Rangers demotion, our immediate rivals across the city have benefited to the tune of a clear run at the title for 5 years, increased earnings from European Competition, and an increased share in television revenue
All of these factors led Rangers towards the abyss, and it’s only through loyalty and persistence of Rangers supporters, that we are still here.
I think we can safely assume that none of the above will face any charges, or be found guilty, so the villains of the piece will all sleep soundly knowing they will not be held to account for corporate vandalism of an institution.
If Philip Green can walk after what he did to BHS, or Mike Ashley can walk after what he did to USC in this corporate jungle, then it would appear unlikely that their conduct with Rangers will see any justice
As the nation prepares for a General election tomorrow, it is worth noting that not one party has any remotely credible proposal as to how to stop the kind of chicanery that goes on every day in business in the UK.
I have in the past asked for a judicial enquiry as to the conduct of all of those who participated in the ritual kicking of Rangers from 2011 to now, but I will admit now that it looks as likely as Sands Casino opening on Edmiston Drive.
While some avenues may well have closed, we must look to salvage what we can from this situation:
– Depending on the outcome of the ‘Big Tax Case’ tribunal appeal, there may will be opportunities to come together and challenge the impacts that case has had
– The Actions of the SFA can still be challenged. Let’s be clear. The Resolution 12 Headcases are at the wrong end of the spectrum as to how the authorities treated Rangers, when the club was being attacked by a pack of corporate wolves
The board of RIFC need to demonstrate that they can co-ordinate and fight for justice, and if they won’t, we need to come together and do it.
They club though, should demonstrate that they have a full understanding of what to do, and how to do it, and someone needs a word in the shell like of Alistair Johnston on what language to use, as his initial foray on the topic on his return to the board was almost as cringeworthy as a Diane Abbott interview.
We as a support need to recognise that the club is still vulnerable to corporate attack, and we need to ensure that Club1872 is independent enough of the RIFC board to be able to scrutinise and influence what goes on behind closed doors.
Those of us who are Independent Shareholders too, need to challenge the board to ensure that our club is being run properly, and I would ask that all Shareholders take this very seriously.
She’ll keep us safe…just like she has been these past few years?!?
https://youtu.be/fn5nd8PKImg
CELTIC1MEMBER1VOTE
Consumers have no voting rights anywhere except voting with their feet – exceptions would be the likes of the co-op and mutuals who are also members.
A figure like businessman Craig Whyte, whose tenure at Rangers led Rangers into financial meltdown, will never be allowed to enter Scottish football again, Scottish Professional Football League chief executive Neil Doncaster has vowed.(Daily Record)
Stinking hypocrisy.
HH.
TET
it’s amazing, how when presented with the same information, totally opposite conclusions are reached and theories espoused.
England v Venezuela in u20 final – must be odds on england
Gene
I can understand them wanting someone to blame, but FFS
It’s great init :-)
HH
16 roads
when you have a compliant media you can get away with anything
I said the other day.
When criminals have control over weapons of mass persuasion……….
GENE on 8TH JUNE 2017 1:46 PM
England v Venezuela in u20 final – must be odds on england
===
Of coure it’s odds on England for they have a strong and stable government of fair minded,civilised gentlemen whereas the Venezuelans are a bunch of raggedy arsed savages run by insane socialist third world types.Put simply,the English are better sorts than those primitive creatures.
Secure our borders…beat the Venezuelans at under 20s football.
That 1972 guy has a screw or two loose.
Gene, when Fergus McCann made the initial share offer he did so on the basis that Celtic Football Club would substantially remain in the ownership of the fans -I.E. The shareholders.
If I remember correctly, the notion was floated that the ordinary fans would always own 66% of the shares and so the idea was that Celtic PLC would be fan owned.
With the greatest of respect to Fergus, that was always going to be nonsense. The share option was a good way for Fergus to get his cash out (something I do not begrudge one penny of) but it was never going to deliver fan ownership as promised.
Celtic PLC or whatever vehicle he chose could have become a mutual or a co-operative enterprise but that was not chosen or deemed too difficult or complex.
Shareholders are not meant to be mere consumers, they are meant to be part owners of the club and technically they are. They just have no real say in the running of the club.
I think Celtic are a pretty well-run club though there will always be areas where I personally may choose to go down a different route (that would happen on any board) but Fergus’ initial promise of fan involvement was never going to happen with the business model chosen.
One member one vote’s point is that the right of ownership and a real vote on the direction of the club actually costs significantly less than the cumulative cost of season ticket ownership and there is a very strong argument that this is not only inconsistent with Fergus’ originally stated thinking but is also somewhat anti-democratic.
I will watch with interest to see how Ann Budge sells of Hearts FC to the fans in the next 18 months.
BABASONICOS71
using the same logic? the one party state that is scotia has no chance against string and staple* engerland on saturday
:))
* copyright Gene
Gene – Blatantly attempting to airbrush history they are.
HH.
BRTH
The point I was making is that the original post to which I replied did not mention shareholders but season ticket holders – ie in that context customers
Watching cricket – camera pans on 2 indian fans eating chips with tomato ketchup – british takeaways rule
GENE on 8TH JUNE 2017 2:00 PM
using the same logic? the one party state that is scotia has no chance against string and staple* engerland on saturday
:))
* copyright Gene
===
Spot on Gene.It’s important for one to know ones place and always bow to the superior culture.Away win for Great Britain,sorry,England,it is then.Narrow loss for the plucky but ultimately inferior Scots. ;)
MS Dhoni the jinky of Indian 1 day cricket wearing No7
PARKROAD67
Hi I’m in Godelis apartments arrive tonight leave next Thursday I have been to Sidari many times the town centre ain’t to big though has enough bars and restrants to keep me happy.Going with my wife and 14th year old nice I will keep an eye out for any posts and we may be able to catch a beer or 2 KEEP THE FAITH
BABASONICOS71
it’s Mister Gene to you :))
GENE on 8TH JUNE 2017 2:09 PM
BABASONICOS71
it’s Mister Gene to you :))
===
;)))
http://www.independent.ie/sport/soccer/saudi-arabian-players-fail-to-observe-a-minutes-silence-in-memory-of-london-terror-victims-35803139.html
BENDIGO on 8TH JUNE 2017 2:19 PM
Who would want to share a country with people like that ?
TONYROME
Our first time in Sidari mhate , have a mhate who has been many times , looking forward to it , will keep in touch through CQN and meet for a few beers as you say , enjoy hols & see you soon ! HH !
Can anyone explain to me why the England U20s were playing Italy today? I thought Scotland were to be their opponents.
TOP TIPS:
Tory Voters.Instead of voting,save time by simply handing over all your money to a fat banker,stealing someone’s wheelchair and deepfreezing your grandparents this winter.
VIZ ;)
macjay1 for Neil Lennon on 8th June 2017 2:32 pm
BENDIGO on 8TH JUNE 2017 2:19 PM
Who would want to share a country with people like that ?
Who would want to sell arms to a country like that?
PARKHEADCUMSALFORD
made the same mistake – we play england in the Toulon tournament semi today – should be underway now
GENE &
PARKHEADCUMSALFORD
Game kick off at 16:00
GARY67 on 8TH JUNE 2017 2:37 PM
macjay1 for Neil Lennon on 8th June 2017 2:32 pm
BENDIGO on 8TH JUNE 2017 2:19 PM
Who would want to share a country with people like that ?
Who would want to sell arms to a country like that?
===
Indeed.British government in bed with the facilitators,financiers and fomenters of ISIS.Brazen hypocrisy.Culpable in any death and misery that emerges from the Wahhabist cesspit.
But as long as we’re selling them stuff and enriching the arms dealers then everything’s ok.
Secure our borders…sell arms to Wahhabi bigots.
I used to vote tactically but abandoned that after 2012 when Clegg and Cable sold a whole generation down the river for the sake of a couple of ministerial motor cars – utterly disgraceful.
They propped up the national disaster called Cameron, leading to Brexit and ultimately the vacuous Theresa May.
Oh they gave us David Cameron and Theresa May,
They gave us Brexit, tuition fees and a load of crap about the IRA,
All those reprobates,
Passed through those Westminster gates,
To crap on folk – the good old Tory way….
P.S. Will David Cameron become the ultimate Tim hero – managing to unite Ireland?
BATEEN BHOY on 8TH JUNE 2017 12:26 PM
Reggie,
I don’t think the sell-on Fee for VVD would only be 15% of any cash which changed hands. I suspect it would be the percentage of the value of the deal including any player + cash.
——–
I’m not so sure about that mate. I think it would be the cash profit. Even if it wasn’t, there would be nothing stopping Liverpool and Southampton coming to agreement that Sakho moved for a nominal fee. You give us £40m for VVD, we’ll give you Sakho for a pound sort of thing. Makes financial sense for Southampton to minimise the sell on fee. May all be moot now anyway.