It has been reported in a number of news outlets that, in relation to the Cricket Discipline Commission inquiry, the Club has admitted a charge of deletion of data and documents.
The CDC proceedings are ongoing and, as such, we are limited as to what we can say at this time.
However, we are writing to reassure Members reading these reports to let them know that no personal data relating to Members of the Club was compromised.
After 5 November 2021, it was discovered that emails and documents, both held electronically by the Club and in paper copy, had been irretrievably deleted from both servers and laptops and otherwise destroyed.
After a thorough independent investigation it was established that the deletion and destruction of documents date from a time period prior to the appointment of Lord Patel and relate to the allegations of racism and the Club’s response to those allegations.
The Club is not prepared to conjecture publicly as to why this occurred, who was responsible or the motivation for doing so.
The ICO was of course informed of the position at the time of discovery, and no further action was taken.
The ECB was also informed of the position, which led to a charge being brought on the basis that the conduct (deletion/destruction) may be prejudicial to the interests of cricket and/or which may bring the ECB and/or the game of cricket into disrepute. The Club has admitted this charge, as there was no viable defence in these circumstances.
We wished to let Members know the position at the earliest opportunity we were able to and to allay concerns about the integrity of Members’ data, which the Club believes is secure.
Best wishes
Yorkshire County Cricket Club
