Rangers administrators welcome inquiry as SFA loses patience

RANGERS’ administrators have welcomed the Scottish Football Association’s decision to conduct a full independent inquiry into activities at the club.

Rangers were forced into administration on Tuesday over an unpaid tax bill of £9 million accrued since Craig Whyte’s takeover of the club in May. Now the governing body will investigate whether there have been any potential breaches of its Articles of Association.

The SFA says attempts to obtain information relating to its “fit and proper person” requirement – regarding Whyte – have been restricted by the club solicitors’ failure to share information.

An SFA statement read: “The Scottish FA can confirm its intention to conduct a full independent inquiry into the activities of Rangers FC and, specifically, a number of potential breaches of the Scottish FA’s Articles of Association.

“We are concerned by the developing situation at the club and the new information that has come to light since the appointment of the club administrators, Duff and Phelps.

“The chairman and his panel will be briefed by the chief executive, Stewart Regan, next week and will consult further with the administrators, Duff and Phelps, as part of their inquiry. We have been guaranteed full co-operation by Paul Clark, representing the company.

“The Scottish FA’s previous efforts in obtaining information relevant to the Fit and Proper Person requirement has been restricted by the club’s solicitors’ continued failure to share information in a timely or detailed manner. We now feel there is no option but to undertake an independent inquiry to establish the clear facts and to determine the extent of any possible rules breaches.”

SFA chief executive Stewart Regan said: “Since we have been unable to receive any detailed information requested in relation to Article 10, we feel we have no option but to appoint an independent committee to investigate a number of concerns we have raised. We expect the investigation to be concluded as quickly as possible and will confirm the outcome in due course.”

Paul Clark, joint administrator, said: “We welcome the announcement by the SFA and believe it will be in the best interests of Rangers and Scottish football. As administrators of the club we will co-operate fully with such an inquiry, subject to the terms of reference, and have indicated this to the SFA.”