West Ham to take legal action over Olympic Stadium claims

West Ham have vehemently denied reports that the club made secret cash payments to a member of the body who decided the outcome of the Olympic Stadium bid.

The east London club says it will take legal action against Tottenham Hotspur and the Sunday Times after the newspaper ran a story based on claims from private investigators allegedly hired by Spurs.

West Ham named the woman at the centre of the row as Dionne Knight, an employee of the Olympic Park Legacy Company (OPLC), the organisation whose board members voted unanimously to let West Ham take over the Olympic Stadium after the games instead of Tottenham.

West Ham confirmed Ms Knight has also undertaken paid work for them while she was employed by OPLC, but denied there was a conflict of interest, saying: “Dionne Knight’s work for the Legacy Stadium Partnership (LSP), owned 50 per cent by London Borough of Newham and 50 per cent by West Ham United, was in relation to the procurement of a construction partner after the Olympic Games.

“A number of companies applied for the procurement contract. It was awarded to Ms Knight as she was able to provide expertise at a significantly competitive price. The work that she subsequently undertook for the LSP was of a very high standard.

The OPLC has confirmed that Ms Knight had absolutely no involvement in the bidding process and we repeat that secret cash was not paid to her. West Ham

“The OPLC has confirmed that Ms Knight had absolutely no involvement in the bidding process and we repeat that secret cash was not paid to her.

“Her work was very transparent and the bidding process was never compromised. The work was never hidden, for example she personally attended meetings. There is considerable documentation to confirm the existence and quality of her work. Two firms of solicitors are able to confirm those facts. The price we paid for the work was extremely competitive.”

The statement added: “We are so confident in the probity of our actions that we will take the strongest action possible against any suggestion of wrongdoing on the part of West Ham United or its officers, as well as involve the police and the data protection registrar in regard to the accessing of private information by illegal means.

“We are certain of the robustness of our successful bid for the Olympic Stadium.”

On Friday the OPLC revealed it had suspended one of its employees following revelations about her work status.

The OPLC released a statement saying: “It has come to our attention that an employee of the Olympic Park Legacy Company has been undertaking paid consultancy work for West Ham United FC.

“The company had no knowledge of this work and no permission was given to undertake it. This individual had no involvement whatsoever in our stadium process.”

The OPLC board, in charge of securing the future of the Olympic Park site, voted 14-0 in February to make West Ham the first choice to move into the £486 million stadium after the 2012 games. The club had been in a head-to-head contest with Tottenham.