Vladimir Romanov urges local councils to cut red tape for football clubs

HEARTS owner Vladimir Romanov has called on local authorities to be more helpful to companies such as his own which have made big investments in Scottish football and the national economy. Referring to the difficulties Hearts have faced in their attempts to get planning permission for the reconstruction of Tynecastle, the Lithuanian banker said that if councils did not do more to encourage enterprise, outside investment could dry up.

Speaking in the week that Hearts launched a questionnaire to gauge supporters' opinions about a possible move away from Tynecastle, Romanov suggested that his Ukio Bankas Investment Group (Ubig) deserved better treatment given the amount of money it had put into the Edinburgh economy. "Ubig has made a significant investment into the club," he said on Hearts' website.

"And it is not just investment into the club but also to the economy of Edinburgh and Scottish football overall.

"It's not impossible to enhance and build national football on foreign investment. Local authorities get a decent income from Hearts. We have paid around 30 million of taxes, and do not forget other companies who work with Hearts or businesses in the area that exist because the club is there.

"Local authorities should provide a proper infrastructure for development opportunities and a favourable climate for new investments. Otherwise, the investment in Scottish football will decrease. If the authorities cannot provide good starting conditions and do not interfere with 'state within a state' affairs, any business approach will not be able to improve the league in the long run. When there is a wrongdoing committed in Scotland nobody should close their eyes and hide their heads in the sand."

Referring to the SPL's plans to revamp the game, Romanov also repeated his belief that league reconstruction could not in itself improve standards. "Regarding league reconstruction, I understand and fully support the aim to improve the structure of the league. However, this should be done not to please the Old Firm that rely on foreign players and have no big interest to develop and educate local players.

"My target behind league reconstruction is the improvement of the youth teams and a competitive reserve league. A reserves league is very important for development and there was a crime made against Scottish football when this league was abolished. I believe the country where football was born will produce a force which will save it."