As previously revealed by me on Bella Caledonia several leading members of Glasgow City Council were guests of The Rangers Football Club (TRFC) in the final match of last year at Ibrox.
The reason for this initial piece was that I had been informed by impeccable sources within Ibrox that there had been serious discussions to fund a landscaping project around Ibrox.
This would have been similar to the ‘Celtic Way’ at the stadium of the Scottish champions at Parkhead.
However, I was told that these monies were to be sourced in a European Union fund for the regeneration of inner cities.
Two weeks ago the following question were submitted to Glasgow City Council by Bella Caledonia:
Can you confirm or deny if Councillor Frank McAveety had a meeting with the Grandmaster of the Orange Order, Eddy Hyde?
Excellently placed sources tell us that this conclave took place on Friday 23rd Oct 2015 at the 29 bar in Glasgow city centre.
Our information is that that this meeting was also attended by Mr James Mortimer, owner of the establishment in question.
Is this true?
Did Councillor McAveety meet with Grandmaster Hyde on this date?
Was Mr Mortimer present?
Have there been subsequent meetings between Mr McAveety and Grandmaster Hyde?
Has Councillor Redmond met with Grandmaster Hyde?
Has Councillor McAveety or any of his colleagues met with Grandmaster Hyde to discuss the mobilisation of the Orange Order to garner support for the Labour Party ahead of the 2017 council elections?
We have been informed by excellently placed sources at Ibrox that some of these council dignitaries in the photo were in discussions with the club to access European monies.
These funds would have been used to enhance the environs and surroundings of the stadium.
Can you confirm or deny that this is the case?
In your previous replies to Bella Caledonia, you made reference to the song ‘The Billy Boys’ as an ‘anthem’.
Could you clarify what you mean by using the term ‘anthem’?
What is Glasgow City Council’s OFFICIAL position on the song ‘The Billy Boys’?
A spokesperson for Councillor McAveety said:
“Councillor McAveety regularly meets with a range of organisations from across the city in his role as Leader of the Council.
“At their invitation, Cllr McAveety met with Henry Dunbar and Eddie Hyde of the Orange Order on Friday 23rd October 2015. The purpose meeting was to discuss the council’s regulatory framework towards parades and processions”
You will note dear reader that most of the submitted questions were not addressed.
I think it is especially significant that the questions about the European monies and the Council’s role in accessing these funds went unanswered.
When this story was broken by Bella Caledonia on March 4th excellently placed sources within Sevco informed me of several meetings at the four-year-old Ibrox club about what to do about this level of media scrutiny.
Indeed, the apparent tenacity of your humble correspondent was earnestly discussed in a highly dignified manner.
I understand that Mr David Cunningham King, the Chairman of Rangers International Football Club (RIFC), opined to his fellow directors that this avenue of funds might now be closed off to them because the light had been shone on their plans.
RIFC is the parent company of the club which was established by Charles Green in 2012.
I was then informed that because of the scrutiny on the European route for the ‘Loyal Avenue’ senior people at Ibrox club have been exploring new pathways to funding.
To that end I submitted these questions yesterday to the press office of The Rangers Football Club:
Can you confirm or deny that on Friday 4th March 2016 or near date that two of your club’s directors had a meeting with a branch of the Glasgow Housing Association (GHA)?
Can you confirm or deny that one of these directors was Mr Paul Murray?
Can you confirm or deny that during that meeting your directors asked the GHA would they like to be part of the regeneration of the environs of Ibrox stadium?
Can you confirm or deny that during that meeting the term “good neighbour” was used by one of your directors as a rationale for the meeting?
Can you confirm or deny that your directors asked the GHA officials to provide 100% of the required funding for the project?
At the time of writing, I have yet to receive any reply from the four-year-old Ibrox club.
I gave them a 24-hour window to reply which elapsed at noon today.
If they do reply, then I will publish their response verbatim here.
It is my understanding that several intrepid stenographers in the mainstream are fully aware of the details of this developing story.
However, they are remaining obediently silent on this one.
Once more the content on this site is guaranteed to be lamb free and does not contain any harmful PR additives.
Perhaps that is why some n the stenography trade in Glasgow would prefer it I spent my time just writing plays.
