UK House of Lords peer scolds "discourteous" Ben Sulayem

UK House of Lords peer Paul Scriven has called out FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem, accusing the latter of a "discourteous and unprofessional" behaviour for failing to reply to a letter addressing human rights concerns.

Scriven, a Liberal Democrat, wrote the FIA president to express his concerns regarding the governing body's decision to ban drivers from expressing or displaying "political, religious and personal statements" on race weekends, unless previously approved by the FIA.

The rule was introduced as an amendment to the FIA's International Sporting Code.

Lord Scriven also criticized Ben Sulayem for failing to reply to a letter sent to the FIA last March in which 90 co-signatory lawmakers questioned F1's increased presence in the Gulf states, and engaging in what they viewed as white-washing.

"Almost one year has passed since you received this letter, and yet, we have not had the courtesy of your response," he wrote. "Your failure to respond to our serious concerns is deeply discourteous and unprofessional.

"Why do you think you can ignore parliamentarians? Do you think that concerns raised over human rights and the policies of the FIA should be above scrutiny? We wrote to you in order to raise concerns that are in the public interest, and we expect openness and transparency from the FIA.

"For the sake of clarity, I still expect to receive a response to our letter dated 16 March 2022 and I am also making this letter open for the sake of transparency and public interest."

• Read also: Angry F1 chiefs call out Ben Sulayem for 'unacceptable' remarks

The letter also highlighted the FIA's recent decision to clamp down on drivers making political statements, with Lord Scriven feeling the initiative was aimed at certain specific individuals.

"It was with great concern that I learnt of the FIA's decision to suppress F1 drivers' voices from speaking out in what you deem to be political statements, a policy that will serve to shield F1 host countries from scrutiny over injustice," he wrote.

"It is very clear to me that this policy targets Sir Lewis Hamilton, your most outspoken driver, whose comments on countries with abysmal rights records, particularly Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, would have undoubtedly not been well received by these corrupt and abusive regimes."

Lord Scriven's letter was made public as tensions are ramping up between the Formula 1 and the Ben Sulayem. Last week, the FIA president received an angry missive from Formula 1's legal department in which it denounced the Emirati's recent comments on the valuation of F1, calling an alleged $20 billion offer tabled by Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund an "inflated price tag".

Ben Sulayem's comments, base don a story published last week by Bloomberg, were seen as the FIA meddling into the sport's commercial affairs.

Formula 1 stated in no uncertain terms that the FIA could be held legally accountable if the sport's valuation takes a hit as a consequence of the president's public remarks.

"To the degree that these comments damage the value of Liberty Media Corporation, the FIA may be liable as a result," stated F1.

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