The Rugby Football Union plans to do away with its council – the decision-making body infamously dubbed “57 old farts” by Will Carling – in a radical governance shake-up following Bill Sweeney’s survival as chief executive last month.
In a move that would significantly strengthen Sweeney’s position and represent the biggest change to the structure of the organisation in recent history, a proposal has been sent for public consultation featuring two options to overhaul the RFU’s governance – both of which would do away with the council, which currently has 63 members.
At last month’s Special General Meeting, Sweeney survived a vote of no confidence – facing down a rebellion that was sparked by the RFU pay scandal – while a second vote was passed to expedite the union’s governance review. As a result, the RFU has begun the consultation process which will run until the end of June.
The proposal is expected to go down badly among the rebels given it is the council who provides oversight of the board on which Sweeny sits. Options set out by the governance and representation review group include replacing the council with a smaller national advisory group or replacing those members with game representatives who would be embedded within all the decision-making bodies. Ultimately, the review group will report back to the council with a final report and set of recommendations after the consultation period.
“This review represents an opportunity for real change,” said Malcolm Wharton, chair of the review group. “We want to work with the game to identify a progressive, inclusive, agile and local approach to governance, where we can deliver greater transparency built on a culture of shared ownership so rugby can thrive across the country.”
As well as providing oversight of the board, the RFU is responsible for setting regulations for the game in England such as competition structures and laws. The majority of council members are elected from geographic areas made up of a single county, or group of counties. The council has long since been opposed to doing away with relegation and promotion between the Premiership and the Championship but, amid plans for a franchised top tier, its removal would appear to remove that hurdle.
An emergency council meeting called shortly before Christmas sought to stave off a vote of no confidence in the then chairman Tom Ilube from a group of disgruntled members. Instead he resigned shortly afterwards with pressure mounting on the board after it emerged Sweeney was paid £1.1m last year. Following that explosive council meeting, a group of members turned on their colleagues, accusing them of “bullying, entitlement and elitism”.
Ed Warner, the chair of GB wheelchair rugby, a former chair of UK Athletics and a member of the review group, said: “The headline-grabbing corollary is our suggestion that the RFU Council be disbanded entirely, or alternatively be replaced by a smaller collection of selected [not elected] individuals who are available to be consulted as expert advisors when necessary.
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“I’ve no doubt this will rankle with a number of existing council members, but am hopeful that the logic of this streamlined structure, empowering those within community rugby, will win the hearts and minds of the majority. None of this lets the RFU board and executive off the hook.
“In fact, it makes it near impossible for them to wriggle out of their responsibilities. Which is just as it should be. All, then, will rest on the effectiveness of the system established to identify appointees to the Board, and on the willingness of clubs to exercise their influence, as enshrined in their voting rights, to ensure that the directors and the executives they employ are held firmly to account.”