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A DAMNING report on safety at Scottish football grounds has revealed a catalogue of serious failings... and even fraud.
The probe by the UK’s top football policing officer highlighted shocking practices at stadiums in Scotland.
It says safety certificates have been altered to increase capacity, clubs have deliberately sold more tickets than their grounds hold, and safety certificates have been approved even though the capacities of individual stands at grounds didn’t add up properly.
It also warns that unsafe scaffolding has been used as terracing for large numbers of fans.
The scandal was revealed by Deputy Chief Constable Mark Roberts of South Yorkshire Police, who leads on football policing for the UK National Police Chiefs’ Council.
But no action has been taken against any individual involved – including those falsifying safety certificates.
Roberts told the Record: “It is for us to flag the issue.
“It is now really for Police Scotland, the Scottish Government and other partners to deem what is the appropriate action to fix the problem and to identify if there are any specific issues that need further action.”
Councils, who are responsible for issuing safety certificates, hit back at the report. The Confederation of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) accused Roberts of using “sweeping statements” .
And Labour MSP James Kelly said “questions still remain” over a crush outside Celtic Park which caused five fans to be injured at an Old Firm game in September.
The report, commissioned by Police Scotland after the Parkhead incident, recommends measures including a new inspection regime.
Roberts blames the shocking safety conclusions – a full 30 years after the Hillsborough disaster – on a lack of
THE FAILINGS
consistency in how Scottish grounds are regulated.
He says: “The inconsistent management of safety certification across Scotland is... a significant concern. A worrying catalogue of poor instances counterbalanced numerous excellent examples of strong management.”
Roberts said a review by the Football Safety Officers’ Association of Scotland into the “disparate safety certificate management picture” had highlighted a “lack of strategic oversight and co-ordination”.
While some examples of safety lapses refer to Rangers’ seasons in the lower leagues – when small grounds faced large travelling supports – the same problems can still surface when big clubs play away in the cup. The report says: “The review was alarmed to learn of serious safety issues at a number of Rangers matches... these issues extend to Scottish Cup matches where teams with large travelling supports are drawn away to