A REPORT which places Blackburn Rovers bottom of the league when it comes to business ethics has been branded as “nonsensical” by the club.

Research group Ethical Consumer conducted the survey that assesses the ethical code of Premier League sides and looks at organisations which have a controlling stake in the clubs.

In Rovers’ case, it looks at the dealings of the Walker Trust and focuses almost exclusively on the actions of Flybe, a move that has infuriated Rovers staff.

The report awards Rovers an “ethiscore” of six out of 20 and gives it poor ratings in the categories of environmental reporting, animal testing, factory farming, animal rights, workers’ rights and supply chain policy.

A spokesman for Rovers said: "We find it nonsensical that this report is assessing us based on the actions and policies of a company over which we have no control.

"The reality is we are actually one of the leading clubs in the Premier League in terms of environmental sustainability.

"We’ve had an Energy Action Programme in place for the past four years, the aim of which is to reduce our carbon footprint by minimising CO2 emissions at the stadium.”

The club also pointed out that it recycles cardboard and white paper and donates any money from that to Derian House Children’s Hospice.

The spokesman added: “We also recycle ink cartridges and donate the funds to Scope, a disability organisation that helps people with cerebral palsy.

"So we endeavour to be as environmentally conscious as we possibly can be."

Out of the 20 Premier League clubs asked to participate in the environmental survey, not one replied to Ethical Consumer.

Top of the league was Aston Villa with an ethiscore of 10 out of 20.