FIA changes pass amid warnings of 'dark period'
An FIA spokesperson described the result as a "resounding majority".
The OAMTC letter adds that recent actions of Ben Sulayem "are inviting comparisons with the excesses of political leaders intent on deconstructing the checks and balances that come with responsible governance".
OAMTC chief executive Oliver Schmerold told BBC Sport after the vote: "We brought forward the motion to postpone the vote on the changes to a future assembly as we believe that they inherit some consequences which desire more discussion.
"This was supported by several other members. The president underlined that the statutory process has been followed and asked for the vote.
"We still believe that it is not good governance to change the longstanding rules for elections only four months before the submission deadline for candidates."
The OAMTC letter hints at the prospect of a legal challenge, on the basis that the changes were "endorsed by (FIA) world council meetings that were not properly constituted, having intentionally excluded elected members from participating and voting".
David Richards, the MotorsportUK representative on the world council, was among those members barred from a meeting in March in a dispute with Ben Sulayem over refusing to sign a revised confidentially agreement.
Schmerold last year voiced his opposition to previous statute changes passed at the last General Assembly in December, describing them as "not good governance" and "not good in terms of checks and balances".
The letter says of the proposed changes:
Extending the deadline for potential candidates to declare "is intended to discourage opposition".
Removing the rule requiring 21 of the 28 members of the world motorsport council to be different nationalities "is intended to stack the WMSC with supporters rather than encourage diversity of opinion"
Aligning the terms of office of the audit, ethics and nominations committees with that of the president "would blatantly reduce the independence of oversight bodies"
Removing the right to approve or dismiss up to four senate members from the senate and giving it to the president "self-evidently weakens the ability of the senate to perform its oversight functions, including and especially oversight of the president himself".
Ben Sulayem's first term of office ends this December and he is so far the only candidate to have confirmed he is standing for election. Rally legend Carlos Sainz has said he is considering running but has not made a final decision.
The letter accuses Ben Sulayem of reneging on his promises during his election campaign in 2021 to ensure "governance structures are compliant with best practices".
And it says he has implemented none of the "critical changes" that were recommended by a review and audit of the FIA's governance structure commissioned from McKinsey in 2022.
It highlights a series of changes that have eroded accountability at the FIA, including:
Limiting the power of the ethics committee, saying "ethical enquiries can - in effect - be suppressed" because of the concentration of oversight into the hands of the FIA president and president of the senate.
The eradication of the post of compliance office following the sacking of Paolo Basarri from that position last year
Centralising decision-making power with the FIA president and president of the senate
The imposition of contracts that require FIA personnel to pay a €50,000 fine if they breach confidentiality terms, and the power of the leadership on its own to determine whether this should be paid and why "without having a hearing, time frame, right of appeal or any definition of what confidentiality means".
The FIA spokesperson added: "The FIA has taken steps since 2021 to strengthen its corporate governance policies. These policies guide the FIA's operations and ensure its rules, practices and processes are robust and transparent.
"The proposed amendments to the FIA statutes are designed to further strengthen processes around governance and confidentiality. They will grant the nominations committee more time to examine the eligibility criteria of candidates, and help to ensure consistency and rigour in the electoral process.
"All proposed amendments were voted through by a super majority of FIA member clubs at the General Assemblies, in line with the democratic process which governs decision making within the federation."
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
36 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Green energy tycoon and top Labour donor calls for 'climate denial' to be made a criminal offence... as Ed Miliband brands Tories and Reform 'unpatriotic' for failing to back Net Zero goals
A leading Labour donor yesterday called for climate denial to be a criminal offence because it causes 'incredible harm'. Green energy tycoon Dale Vince tweeted in support of Energy Secretary Ed Miliband, who branded the Conservatives and Reform 'unpatriotic' for not backing Net Zero goals. It came as Mr Miliband gave an urgent statement in Parliament on the state of the climate crisis, telling The Guardian he wanted it to be an 'annual exercise in radical truth-telling'. Mr Vince, who donated £5million to Labour in the run-up to the general election, posted: 'Good move from Ed, it's time to tell it like it is. I'd make climate denial a criminal offence – given the incredible harm it will cause, even by slowing down progress to Net Zero.' Speaking to MPs yesterday, Mr Miliband referenced a Met Office report warning that the UK is getting hotter and wetter with more 'extreme events'. 'The central England temperature series shows recent warmth has far exceeded any temperatures observed in at least 300 years,' he said. He also warned that Britain was one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world, and said heatwaves had led to 10,000 excess deaths in England during the past four years. Facing down his critics, he added: 'To those who say Britain cannot make a difference. I say you are wrong. Stop talking our country down. British leadership matters.' But Tory energy spokesman Andrew Bowie said it was 'ridiculous' to accuse opponents of Net Zero of being unpatriotic. 'We need to bring back a sense of rationality, of proportion to this debate,' he said, adding that 'language like this is alienating more and more people'. And Mr Bowie said it was 'shameful' of Mr Miliband to use the Met Office report as an excuse to attack his opponents, while also warning that Labour's climate policies in the race to Net Zero threaten to 'impoverish' the British people. 'It is rather shameful that the Secretary should be using this [Met Office] report as cover, whilst ratcheting up the language, whilst increasing the shrill criticism of all those who question the department and its policies, all to distract from the fact that the plans mean that Britain will be poorer and that no one, no one looking at how we are decarbonised, could ever claim that this is a model to follow,' he told MPs. 'We are proud to have been a world leader, but it isn't a race if nobody else is running. 'If we are leading the way, we need to make sure there's a path others will follow. We must decarbonise in a way that creates energy security and prosperity rather than forcing industry abroad and impoverishing the British people.' Mr Miliband also suggested that the Government-owned GB Energy could fund solar panels on religious buildings, such as churches and mosques.
Daily Mail
36 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
'It's one rule for us and another for the terrorist', one furious veteran tells ROBERT HARDMAN
The blazers, berets and regimental ties were out in force, including contingents of old boys from the Fusiliers, the Royal Artillery and, outnumbering all the rest, the Parachute Regiment. More intriguing were those with no tie, no insignia, no medals – nothing, in fact, to suggest a military connection. 'Just look for the scruffiest buggers you can find,' was the advice of George Simm, former Regimental Sergeant Major of the Special Air Service when I asked him to point me towards bona fide alumni of his old regiment yesterday. Veterans of all stripes were in Parliament Square to support the public petition demanding that the Government stops peeling away the legal protections for Northern Ireland veterans by repealing the Legacy Act. Many of those are now facing historic claims and vexatious 'lawfare' under human rights laws which never existed at the time when these men were simply doing their duty. So many people have now signed the petition – with more still signing it every day – that the Government was forced to hold a debate on the subject yesterday in Westminster Hall. The petition is running in parallel to the Mail's 'Stop The SAS Betrayal' campaign, which seeks to stop the terrorists and their supporters from rewriting the history of the Troubles in order to paint our Special Forces not as heroes who defeated the IRA and their ilk but as criminals. Hence the presence of many SAS veterans yesterday. Some had never attended a demonstration before and were not entirely comfortable being at this one, with lots of pesky journalists like me milling around with photographers. So many people have now signed the petition – with more still signing it every day – that the Government was forced to hold a debate on the subject yesterday in Westminster Hall 'I'm not sure I should even be talking to you,' said one who gave his name as Ian. Dressed in shorts and trainers, his only military insignia was the small black insect (a tick, it transpired) printed on his sports shirt, the unofficial badge of A Squadron of the SAS. He had turned up because he is fed up with 'two tier' justice which grants terrorists immunity thanks to 'comfort letters' from Tony Blair but no such comfort for veterans who were simply obeying orders of the state. 'It's one rule for us and another for the terrorist,' he explained. He is furious that the SAS are now being framed as rogue operators, when they had to abide by the same code of conduct and strict rules of engagement – known as the 'yellow card' – as every other branch of the military serving in Northern Ireland. Take the day a well-known IRA terrorist sprayed petrol over the hedge in which the SAS man was hiding, having rumbled that he was under surveillance. The terrorist then sent his young son forward with matches to ignite the petrol, knowing the SAS would not shoot a child. Sure enough, the SAS men ended up in hospital being treated for burns instead. I bumped into Colonel Tim Collins, famous for his stirring address to the Royal Irish Regiment on the eve of the 2003 invasion of Iraq. He was here wearing his previous hat as an SAS commander. 'All this lawfare is because the Government wants to garner plaudits from the international legal establishment and because republican lawyers know they can divert vast public funds and attack the old enemy using his own money,' he told me. There were plenty of Conservative MPs on parade, many with military backgrounds such as Lincoln Jopp MC, late of the Scots Guards and a four-tour veteran of Northern Ireland. He clearly remembered the strict training on rules of engagement, but also the maxim that soldiers could safely take decisions on the basis that 'it's better to be tried by 12 men than carried home by six'. He added: 'Sadly, that is no longer the case.' Perhaps the boldest man present was a gent standing on the edge of the throng. He was a Chelsea Pensioner in the full, splendid scarlet uniform of the Royal Hospital, who politely explained he could not comment or give his name. Everyone knew he would be in almighty trouble just for being there. Another Chelsea pensioner (in plain clothes) explained that our man had seen so many friends killed or maimed in Northern Ireland that he felt he had to come and was not going to dress down. The blazers, berets and regimental ties were out in force, including contingents of old boys from the Fusiliers, the Royal Artillery and, outnumbering all the rest, the Parachute Regiment 'Just look for the scruffiest buggers you can find,' was the advice of George Simm, former Regimental Sergeant Major of the Special Air Service when I asked him to point me towards bona fide alumni of his old regiment yesterday He received a throaty 'three cheers' from the 200 or so members of Rolling Thunder, the band of biker veterans who hold regular rallies in support of better legal protections for old soldiers. They had secured official permission from the police to form their hardware up alongside the Cenotaph yesterday. As the debate kicked off inside Westminster, they spent an hour driving round Parliament Square and along the Embankment, growling, parping and waving their flags. One of their number, an alumnus of the Military Police who would only identify himself as Rob from Brentford, had an odd-looking passenger on the back of his Harley-Davidson. On closer inspection it was a skeleton wearing a T-shirt saying 'Labour Loves A Terrorist.' And not a Palestinian flag in sight.
The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
Schools to teach anti-misogyny lessons in bid to tackle ‘manosphere'
Children will be taught how to combat misogyny and resist so-called incel culture under new guidance for schools published on Tuesday. The guidance on relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) focuses on helping boys find positive role models amid the increasing spread of sexist online content from 'manosphere' influencers such as Andrew Tate. It also stresses the need to avoid 'stigmatising boys for being boys'. As well as lessons on so-called incel (involuntary celibate) culture, secondary schools will be required to provide young people with greater awareness of AI, deepfakes and links between pornography and misogyny. The guidance comes as the Department for Education (DfE) warned that misogynistic attitudes had reached 'epidemic scale' among young people, with 54% of those aged 11-19 saying they had witnessed misogynist comments. Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said: 'Before I was elected to Parliament, I managed a refuge for women and children fleeing domestic violence, so I have seen first-hand the devastating impact when we don't foster healthy attitudes from the youngest age. 'I want our children to be equipped to defy the malign forces that exist online. Schools and parents alike have a vital role to play, helping children identify positive role models and resist the manipulation too often used online to groom impressionable young minds.' In its manifesto last year, Labour pledged to halve the rate of violence against women and girls in 10 years. And earlier in 2025, Sir Keir Starmer praised the Netflix drama Adolescence for highlighting how misogyny had 'taken on a different form' and said he wanted a discussion on what could be done to stop young boys 'being dragged into this whirlpool of hatred and misogyny'. Margaret Mulholland, of the Association of School and College Leaders, welcomed the new guidance and its focus on finding positive male role models for boys, saying it was 'important that we don't simply tell boys what is wrong'. The previous Conservative government proposed changing the guidance on RSHE in May last year, with then-prime minister Rishi Sunak expressing concern children were being exposed to 'inappropriate' content. The draft guidance, which was open to a nine-week consultation, proposed clear age limits on the teaching of certain topics to ensure children were not 'exposed to too much too soon'. It said sex education should be taught no earlier than Year 5, when pupils are aged nine to 10, and that what is described as the 'contested topic of gender identity' should not be taught at all. The proposed guidance said schools should 'at minimum' show parents a representative sample of teaching resources they plan to use and that schools 'should respond positively to requests from parents to see material that has not already been shared'. While Tuesday's revised guidance includes the requirement to provide parents with teaching materials, the new Government has scrapped the proposal to prescribe specific ages at which individual topics are taught. The DfE said there would be a 'strong new emphasis on age-appropriate' teaching, and a 'clear dividing line' between primary and secondary school. But the guidance would allow teachers to 'sensitively respond to topics that children might have seen online or heard from their friends', with research suggesting 22% of primary school-aged girls had seen 'rude images online'. Tuesday's guidance also includes requirements on helping children with their mental health, including working with mental health professionals to discuss suicide prevention 'in an age-appropriate way'. Children will be taught the importance of 'grit and resilience' in order to help them 'feel able to take on challenges and risks'. Andy Airey, Mike Palmer and Tim Owen – who founded suicide prevention charity 3 Dads Walking in memory of their daughters – said: 'Giving schools permission to talk about suicide prevention means more young people can be supported to open up about difficult feelings and know where to find help. 'We know, from painful personal experience, how much this matters. This change will save lives.' Schools will be able to implement the guidance from September this year, and must follow it from September 2026.
