At a general meeting on November 10, Abta said members would be asked to consider a number of proposals for approval.

One of these will be a proposed amendment to the election process of Abta’s chairman, he said.

The chair of the board is currently elected by members following a selection process, where nominees have to be supported by two board members.

Abta said it was proposed that in the future the chair would be appointed by the board from among its members, which includes elected and appointed directors.

“This is a model that is commonly used in organisations to ensure the efficient running of the board, and reflects the increasingly technical demands of the chairman role,” Abta said in a statement.

Mark Tanzer added: “The most important role of the chair is to manage the board meetings and the debates that take place around the Abta board table.

“We have been fortunate in that our recent chair have had deep experience of the industry in general, and of Abta’s agenda in particular. The best way to ensure this continued level of expertise in the future is for the board to appoint a chair who has been part of the ongoing discussions, understands the context, and  the issues, and has built a working relationship with fellow directors.

“Abta members will continue to elect directly a number of the board positions, and the board will continue to be fully representative of the Abta membership as a whole.”

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