• Duff and Phelps strongly deny BBC allegations
• Questions asked about advisor's knowledge of ticket deal
Rangers' administrators have been forced to defend themselves against allegations of a conflict of interest, after a BBC television documentary made claims against a partner in the firm.
Scrutiny has surrounded Duff and Phelps from the moment it was selected by the club's owner Craig Whyte as his preferred administrators – and duly appointed – in February. Such focus arose because David Grier, a partner in the company, was known to have advised Whyte prior to his Rangers takeover last May.
At the time of its appointment, Duff and Phelps moved to separate its Rangers work from that previously undertaken by Grier.
Yet an investigative documentary aired by BBC Scotland on Wednesday night claims email evidence shows Grier knew about the controversial deal done between Whyte and the football finance firm Ticketus to fund the latter's Rangers buy-out. Whyte mortgaged Rangers' advance season ticket monies, a matter which made the club unattractive to any future buyer because of the impact on income streams.
The programme quotes an email which Grier is copied into from 19 April last year. Highlighted from the message is reference to when Whyte takes "board control the assignation documents will be released by the bank and the Ticketus agreements will become unconditional".
Grier initially told the BBC it was only months later that he knew about the Ticketus arrangement. Grier said: "It was September, when – I think it was probably August time actually – when there was a payment that was due back to Ticketus that was not planned into the cash flow that we were working to and which we were presenting to HMRC, so that set a series of hares running."
When pressed later on the apparent contradiction, Grier said: "I categorically deny that at the time of the Craig Whyte takeover of Rangers, I had any knowledge that funds from Ticketus were being used to acquire the club.
"However we were party to discussions regarding Ticketus as a recognised source of short-term working capital. Material information was withheld to us."
On Wednesday night, Grier issued a more vehement statement which read: "I categorically deny that at the time of the Craig Whyte takeover of Rangers, I had any knowledge that funds from Ticketus were being used to acquire the club. This accusation is wrong, highly defamatory and betrays a lack of understanding of the facts.
"The reality is that when my concerns about the use of Ticketus funding crystallised over the summer of 2011, I took immediate steps to raise these concerns with controlling directors of Rangers and HMRC.
"The email referred to in Wednesday's programme to Ticketus dated 19 April 2011 mentions the possibility of raising funds for working capital but does not provide any information of quantum or terms of such a proposal. To suggest this email establishes an awareness of Ticketus providing acquisition funding is absurd and ridiculous."
In a further complication, Rangers' administrators have launched a £25m legal action against Whyte and his former solicitors regarding how the club purchase was funded by Ticketus rather than the businessman's own funds.
Rangers' administration has been carried out by another partner in Duff and Phelps, Paul Clark, and his colleague David Whitehouse.
Clark said: "The allegations made in tonight's programme against Duff and Phelps are untrue, a distortion of the facts and highly defamatory. Discussions are already underway with our solicitors with a view to bringing legal proceedings against the BBC.
Clark added: "For the BBC now to accuse Duff and Phelps of conflicts of interest and unprofessional conduct based on a deep misunderstanding of the true picture is downright irresponsible and defamatory and we will not let the matter rest there."
The BBC also offered detailed information on the recipients of employee benefit trust (EBT) schemes – which have been known for some time now to have historically existed at Rangers – by naming the ex-owner Sir David Murray and players such as Barry Ferguson and Stefan Klos as multi-million pound beneficiaries. Graeme Souness is also quoted as receiving £30,000 from an EBT in 2001, a decade after leaving Ibrox and at a time when he managed Blackburn Rovers with the current president of the Scottish FA, Campbell Ogilvie, alleged to have collected £95,000. The legality of that scheme as operated by Rangers is subject to an as yet unresolved tax tribunal.
More relevant and potentially serious in a football sense is whether players held double or undisclosed contracts when collecting EBT payments. Three hours before the documentary was aired, the SPL issued a statement which hinted it had not yet received the information they have sought from Rangers and Duff and Phelps in relation to allegations of the illegal registering of players. Since March, the league's lawyers have undertaken an investigation which will look at every Rangers player contract dating back 14 years.
A SPL spokesperson said: "The investigation into the EBT payments made by Rangers FC is being actively pursued on behalf of the SPL.
"All relevant documents, materials and information have been sought from Rangers FC and we look forward to receiving full co-operation from the club and its administrators in providing everything that it and they have access to and which is required for the investigation to be complete." Read More
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