After 50 years of non-democratic representation of the whole of British Rowing, England's Amateur Rowing Association is poised to pass a motion at their annual meeting in London today to offer the Scottish and Welsh Associations token representation on their top committee.
This move, which if it is passed, will result in both the Scottish and Welsh presidents offered seats as ex-officio members of the ARA's council with limited voting rights, comes completely out of the blue and is seen by some as a cynical attempt to divert the criticisms of the UK Sports Council - the #2m-plus paymasters of the ARA. In recent meetings the council have been highly critical of the ARA's self-proclaimed role as guardians of British rowing matters and their clear non-accountability in this arena.
Typically, this proposal is being progressed without the benefit of any type of consultation in Scotland and Wales. While the ARA may not realise it, this attitude and initiative is more indicative of the problem that has existed over the years, rather than the solution to it.
While expressing his worries, Scottish association president Iain Somerside confirmed that he had received no formal contact about the proposal, other than the receipt of a copy of today's agenda and an invitation to sit in on a future council meeting. Both moves seem highly presumptive of the democratic process.
''I have been involved in detailed negotiations with the ARA, the UK Sports Councils and others to set up a new independent British rowing organisation,'' an upset Somerside confirmed yesterday. ''All this while, the ARA have been cooking up this idea without talking to us about it - hardly a good foundation for open partnership working, I would suggest.''
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