Colin Graves "should put up or shut up" after being accused of substantial interference at Yorkshire

The Graves Family trustees are owed £15 million by the Headingley club and have a veto on board appointments and dismissals. Lord Kamlesh Patel is working to have these both removed

Colin Graves is set to have his influence at Yorkshire curtailed after being accused of retaining "substantial and ongoing interference" at the club.

Chair Lord Kamlesh Patel says an observer on behalf of the Graves Family Trust, which is owed £15 million by the Headingley club, and the power to veto key decisions such as appointments and dismissals, will be removed.

It comes after ex-chair Roger Hutton complained of unwanted sway from Graves, who was at the club as executive chair between 2012 and 2015, which included a disagreement on the report into institutional racism following Azeem Rafiq's experiences.

In a letter submitted to MPs on the DCMS committee, Hutton alleged that Graves acted as a roadblock to change amid the scandal.

Initially, Yorkshire refused to take action against anyone in the wake of the report being compiled.

Chief executive Mark Arthur and director Martyn Moxon - who Hutton had tried to remove himself - would later resign, while the entire coaching team including Andrew Gale were dismissed.

Ex-ECB chair Graves turned down an offer to answer questions from the DCMS committee regarding the racism scandal. However, he angered MPs with a briefing to a Yorkshire Evening Post journalist downplaying the influence of the trustees.

^{Roger Hutton submitted a letter containing several allegations regarding the conduct of Graves and the family trust (Justin Talis/Getty Images)}

A letter submitted by Hutton, read by DCMS committee chair Julian Knight MP, said: "What was happening on a weekly basis is it sometimes appeared to me as if Mr Graves was influencing the trust and sometimes spoke as if he was. 

"Mr Graves expressed concern at how the investigation (into Rafiq's allegations) had taken place some of which I empathised with.

"But his views on Azeem Rafiq, the finding of the report and how the club should respond to those findings are were different from mine.

"Shortly after that meeting, I was contacted by the trust's independent observer. He explained very clearly that I should not consider the trust an ordinary secure creditor. 

"He also told me, though it proved to be incorrect, that the trust could remove me if they didn't like what I was doing and that I should listen to what they say.

"The trust summoned me to a meeting where they asked me to listen to Mr Graves and others in the club whose views differed to non-executive members of the board but were more closely aligned to those of Mr Graves.

"I formed the view that some of his opinions were very similar to those of the executive board and others in the club."

^{The hearing is a continuation of the racism in cricket investigation (Gareth Copley/Getty Images)}

Mr Knight added in his own words: "There seems to be substantial and ongoing interference by Mr Graves in the governance of Yorkshire CCC.

"We reissue our invitation to Mr Graves to this committee in order to explain himself in terms of the aspect of the handling of Mr Rafiq's allegations and to also explain the role of the Graves Trust and going forwards.

"We really think Mr Graves should put up, or shut up in this instance."

Questioned about the relationship between the Graves trust and Yorkshire, Lord Patel confirmed he'd been put under no pressure regarding recent appointments to the board but said the observer and veto on key decisions are in the process of being removed.

"When you have a financial agreement with those added extras, that has an observer on the board, you could veto in theory the appointment of a person," he said.

"That wasn't used while I was there and I don't believe was used before. We are currently drafting up legal documents to make sure all those powers are removed."

He added: "To have that potential, or perception that someone does have power in a place, is not helpful for anyone going forward."