Bravo HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) yesterday
• Rangers administrators' CVA offers 8-9p in the pound (best case scenario)
• Administrators fees:
• Football debts:
• HMRC owed:
• Ticketus owed:
• Total owed to unsecured creditors: £55m
By the way the money owed to 'us all', via HMRC, is more than the as stated above, with the 'big tax case' over a further bill of anything from £35m to £70m over unpaid taxes still to be heard.
This means the only way forward is liquidation of Rangers, hopefully with a full asset sale so that at least we get back the monies that we are owed. At present, Craig Whyte is the majority Rangers shareholder and holds a floating charge over Ibrox, Murray Park and the Albion Street car park, though the floating charge is not guaranteed if the club is liquidated and could be subject to a legal challenge by the appointed liquidators.
Now that Rangers is in liquidation it's registrations with the Scottish Football Association and the Scottish Premier League (SPL) are terminated. If a new company (Football club) is formed it's up to the SPL whether they are admitted, though supporters of other SPL clubs have been in contact with their clubs to demand that they vote against Rangers playing in the SPL next season, with their preference being for Rangers to apply to join the Scottish Football League and to start again in the Third Division.
As for the players and staff, then under TUPE have the legal right to transfer to the new employer on their existing terms and conditions of employment and with all their existing employment rights and liabilities intact OR terminate their employment contracts and seek employment elsewhere, in the case of players probably with no transfer fees payable.
A sad end to a great club perhaps, but perhaps inevitable given the way it's been run in recent years.
The reasons HMRC have given for their decision to vote against the CVA proposal are understood be be as follows
:arrow: HMRC has cited its general policy of not agreeing to a CVA where there is strong evidence of non-compliance by a company with its tax liabilities
:arrow: The CVA was not acceptable given The Rangers Football Club plc's level of indebtedness to HMRC.
:arrow: The public interest will be better served with the liquidation of The Rangers Football Club plc as a corporate entity.
:arrow: The decision will enable a liquidator to instigate a wider investigation into all of the financial affairs and management of the club in recent years and to bring to task those they believe are responsible for its collapse.
:arrow: Believes there will be an enhanced recovery of funds for creditors by pursuing those individuals who they believe are responsible.
We shall see.
Now that he creditors of Rangers have today formally rejected a CVA proposal club will now be liquidated by HMRC appointed liquidators from BDO to wind up the 140-year-old football club and its assets sold.
Malcolm Cohen and James Stephen from financial company BDO saying, "The liquidators will seek to protect any remaining assets, maximise recoveries for the benefit of creditors and investigate the reasons behind the failure of the company."
However if BDO are the liquidators, can any one explain to us how Duff and Phelps can now press ahead with a plan to sell the club's assets - including Ibrox Stadium, the nearby Albion car park and the Murray Park training facility - when this surely should be the BDO's role as liquidators and especially as they have the power to unpick any transactions which they believe are not in the best interests of creditors ?
Whilst Stephen Green is pushing ahead to create a new company called The Rangers Football Club (or similar name), there are several major hurdles to clear before the club is back playing football, not least no share to play in the Scottish Premier League (SPL), not being licensed by the Scottish Football Association (SFA), and how to to retain the players following liquidation.
Employment lawyer Mark Hamilton of Maclay Murray & Spens, in respect of the players, "Liquidation acts as a termination of their contracts by itself and they would be able to say Rangers had breached their contract by going into liquidation and they would be free from their contract at that point. There is no automatic transfer in a liquidation sale."
With the Scottish PFA pointing out, "The European Court of Justice ruling in the case of Bosman is authority for the view that professional footballers are workers like anyone else and are entitled to exercise their right to Freedom of Movement when out of contract."
The Scottish PFA adding, "Though if they choose to transfer to the new club under Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) they do so on their existing contractual terms."
However TUPE 2006 allows variations to the terms and conditions of transferred employees in some insolvency situations which would otherwise be prohibited, e.g. insolvency proceedings begun with a view to liquidating the assets of the business, or insolvency proceedings which are not begun with a view to liquidating the assets of the business. More particularly usual TUPE restrictions on varying contracts of employment are effectively waived in this type of insolvency situation and TUPE will not prevent "permitted variations" (which may result in employees being employed on inferior terms and conditions) from being agreed.
Where will Rangers (new company) be playing football next season ?
Should they not get the required 8-4 vote in their favour by the other Scottish Premier League (SPL) clubs on 4th July, then they would have to apply to fill the vacancy that would be created by a team being promoted from the Scottish Football League.
Is this likely ?
Well it's looking doubtful given Dundee United and Hearts have publically said they'll vote against and today there are indications that Aberdeen will join the 'No' camp,
So potentially it could be 9-3, however
Motherwell fans have been asked to vote on whether the club should support or oppose a "newco" Rangers,
many Celtic fans have also been vocal in calling for a vote against,
Hibernian's Rod Petrie has made the strongest comments against a 'newco' Rangers being granted admission though not saying how they'll vote,
Inverness Caley Thistle chairman Kenny Cameron is stressing the importance of fans' views in how they vote,
St Johnstone chairman Steve Brown has said that he would like to see a 'newco' Rangers punished,
St Mirren have not indicated either way,
neither have newly promoted Ross County,
and Kilmarnock's Michael Johnston has insisted that the SPL should not punish Rangers any more than the 10-point penalty and fine already applied to the club.
Some might query who might 'replace' Rangers in the SPL if they lose the vote, with the likely replacement being Dunfermline who finished bottom of the SPL.
Interesting times for Rangers alongside all the other issues they have to deal with.
Four more players - captain Steven Davis, Allan McGregor, Kyle Lafferty and Jamie Ness - have lodged objections to their transfer to a new Rangers, alongside Steven Naismith, Steven Whittaker, Sone Aluko and Rhys McCabe last week.
"Allan McGregor, Steven Davis, Jamie Ness and Kyle Lafferty have instructed PFA lawyers Bridge Litigation UK to object to their transfer to the Rangers' newco."
If this continues, particularly as it's unlikely new Rangers will gain admittance to the SPL and several SFL First Division clubs having already objecting to a new Rangers being admitted to Division One instead of starting life two rungs below, will there be much of a team left ?
Charles Green has told Rangers' he intends to leave his chief executive role "with immediate effect" as he's the subject of an independent investigation, commissioned by the club's board, following allegations of covert dealings with former Rangers owner Craig Whyte.
This follows the SFA seeking clarification about his business dealings with Craig Whyte, following allegations about Green and commercial director Imran Ahmad's links with former owner Craig Whyte.
There is also a separate police investigation into alleged leaks of confidential information relating to "oldco" Rangers long running tax dispute with HMRC although
Rangers won the so-called Big Tax Case last year which HMRC said they will appeal.
Will it never end, though more importantly will the truth ever surface ?
