10 in a Row
Well-known member
Lord Nimmo Smith found Rangers guilty on all the charges he was asked to investigate, but then chose not to punish them. That’s the whole story.
It was no part of the Commission’s job to consider the legality outside football of the EBT arrangements, so it’s slightly interesting that it feels the need to make this point.
This interpretation is the core of the Commission’s decision to, in effect, not punish Rangers at all. What it says is that although Rangers were registering players illegally, because they didn’t get caught at the time it didn’t count, and any game in which they played must be allowed to stand.
“Although it is clear to us from Mr Odam’s evidence that Oldco’s failure to disclose the side-letters to the SPL and the SFA was at least partly motivated by a wish not to risk prejudicing the tax advantages of the EBT scheme, we are unable to reach the conclusion that this led to any competitive advantage.
There was no evidence before us as to whether any other members of the SPL used similar EBT schemes, or the effect of their doing so.”
This is a very strange section. It translates as “We can’t say that Rangers gained a competitive advantage by playing improperly-registered players, because for all we know every other club was doing it as well.” Or simplified further: they were cheating, but maybe everyone else was too, which would cancel it out.
Not my words but the lord-Nimmo Smith scandal should have been challenged !!!!
It was no part of the Commission’s job to consider the legality outside football of the EBT arrangements, so it’s slightly interesting that it feels the need to make this point.
This interpretation is the core of the Commission’s decision to, in effect, not punish Rangers at all. What it says is that although Rangers were registering players illegally, because they didn’t get caught at the time it didn’t count, and any game in which they played must be allowed to stand.
“Although it is clear to us from Mr Odam’s evidence that Oldco’s failure to disclose the side-letters to the SPL and the SFA was at least partly motivated by a wish not to risk prejudicing the tax advantages of the EBT scheme, we are unable to reach the conclusion that this led to any competitive advantage.
There was no evidence before us as to whether any other members of the SPL used similar EBT schemes, or the effect of their doing so.”
This is a very strange section. It translates as “We can’t say that Rangers gained a competitive advantage by playing improperly-registered players, because for all we know every other club was doing it as well.” Or simplified further: they were cheating, but maybe everyone else was too, which would cancel it out.
Not my words but the lord-Nimmo Smith scandal should have been challenged !!!!
