The total cost of research on racism in the Scottish spiral cricket in more than £ 800,000, although charges have never been filed against any individual.
Mail Sport can reveal the sum after we made a FOI (request for freedom of information) to Sportscotland, the National Agency for the Sports of Scotland.
The costs covered the changing report of the limits, which found that Cricket Scotland was institutionally racist, and the investigation of independent references that followed.
In total, Sportscotland paid £ 189,000 for the changing report of the limits that was made by experts in equality and diversity, Plan4Sport.
Meanwhile, a total of £ 647,849 to the legal signatures Harper Macleod, Bishop Lloyd and Jackson APPLICES, and the support groups of Equality of Racas that look equal for the probe of independent references, which was established to analyze the references by the initial report.
Eighty -seven references were generated in relation to 53 accusations of racism against 31 different people, two clubs and two regional associations.
The Changing The Boundaries that surprised the Scottish Cricket was launched in 2022
The change of reports led to a campaign to address racism in the game.
According to Sportscotland, the research team reinforced the original findings of the limits change report, and then reports were passed with recommendations to the Cricket Scotland Board to determine what measures could be and should be taken.
Thirteen cases were attended to the conduct in the sports manager for their consideration, but charges were never presented against the people who had allegedly carried out crimes.
Those cases that did not progress to the disciplinary stage were awarded so as not to have fulfilled the criteria required for new measures.
This included not having sufficient evidence of a violation of the rules, not having clarity on what that rule was or if it was in its place at that time, and the Crick Scotland does not have the jurisdictional mandate (or authority) to be able to take formal measures and Proceed to put the matter before a committee for a new hearing.
The cost of the investigation is now likely to increase the eyebrows.
Mail Sport understands that some of the accused of racism feel harmed throughout the references process, as well as some of the plaintiffs about a lack of perceived transparency.
Brian Whittle, a Scottish conservative minister of Sport, told Mail Sport that it was “completely correct that Sportscotland thoroughly investigates the accusations of racism in the Crick, or in fact any sport.”
But he questioned the amount of money spent in the process of later references that took 18 months to complete.
Stewart Harris, then executive director of Sportscotland, with the Cricket Scotland report
He said: “When the budgets are being clenched by SNP cuts to sports financing, spend hundreds of thousands of pounds in an investigation that has not been delivered for years and does not seem to have delivered a particularly clear result, it seems difficult to justify.”
It is likely that the cost raises sport questions, particularly when the belts harden between the councils and the governing bodies.
Volunteer layoffs are actively considered within Sportscotland.
The Sportscotland headquarters in Caledonia House in Edinburgh was sold last year, leaving several temporarily homeless sports governing bodies.
Forbes Dunlop, CEO of Sportscotland, said the agency acknowledged that “a significant amount of public money has been spent on changing the limits and the process of subsequent references,” but said that Sportscotland had learned lessons as a result.
He told Mail Sport: 'The Changing The Boundaries reported when Crickt Scotland contacted Sportscotland in 2021 to ask for help to establish an independent review of racism in the Scottish Cricket.
'This was in response to several people shared experiences in public and private and it was a very difficult time for all involved in sports.
'In response, Sportscotland appointed Plan4Sport to carry out an exhaustive review. In addition to giving taxpayers a safe and anonymous place for their voices to be heard, the review also analyzed the existing policies and procedures of Cricket Scotland against the best practices of equality, diversity and inclusion to ensure that lessons were learned and changes were given .
'Cricket Scotland has progressed, and we will continue working with them, under improved supervision, to ensure that progress continues.
'We recognize that a significant amount of public money has been spent on changing the limits and the process of subsequent references. Sportscotland has learned lessons of this process and for sport more widely.
'As a result, we have ensured additional support for Scottish government bodies has been established to strengthen policies and procedures around discrimination in all its forms.
'There is no doubt that people have had some terrible experiences, and we are grateful to the complainants and all who shared their experiences that allowed us to challenge ourselves and boost the change in our sector.
'It is our collective responsibility to ensure that sport is about positive experiences and we are clear and consistent that there is no place for racism.
“Our work to address racism in Scottish sport did not begin with the review of the Cricket, and will not end with the Crick Review.”