Latest news with #R204
TimesLIVE
14-05-2025
- Automotive
- TimesLIVE
FIA reduces penalty for swearing after driver backlash
The maximum penalties for drivers swearing has been reduced by 50% while stewards will also be given more discretion on deciding penalties, the governing FIA said on Wednesday. Competitors in Formula One and rallying have been at loggerheads with FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem over a crackdown on bad language during events. Ben Sulayem said last month that he was considering 'improvements' to rules. World championship rally drivers had made a breakthrough in April when they reached a compromise to divide events into a controlled zone and an uncontrolled one, with the change now being implemented across all events sanctioned by the FIA. The FIA said the base maximum penalty has been reduced from €10,000 (R204,466) to €5,000 (R102,232) while stewards will have the option to fully suspend a penalty if it is the first offence by a driver or a team. Moreover, stewards will be able to differentiate between 'controlled and non-controlled environments'. Controlled environments include press conferences while tracks or rally stages are uncontrolled environments. 'As a former rally driver, I know first-hand the range of emotions that are faced during competition,' said Ben Sulayem, who is up for re-election at the end of the year. 'I have led an extensive and collaborative review with contributions from across the seven FIA world championships, FIA member clubs and other motor sports organisations. 'The improvements the FIA announced today to Appendix B will ensure we continue to promote the best of sportsmanship in motorsport, while also giving stewards effective guidelines to act against individuals who may bring the sport into disrepute.' Appendix B covers stewards' penalty guidelines, setting out punishments for misconduct including words, deeds or writings that might have caused moral injury to the FIA or motorsport in general. Mitigating circumstances will also be considered while the abuse of officials will now result in sporting penalties instead of fines. Formula One Stewards chair Garry Connelly said the new changes would give stewards guidance to 'differentiate between on- and off-track issues'. 'Drivers are looked up to as role models by young fans and are rightly seen as ambassadors for the wider world of motorsport,' said Ronan Morgan, president of the Drivers' Committee. 'How they act really does matter but it is important to recognise that there is a difference between what is said during a race and in a press conference.' Last season, Red Bull's triple world champion Max Verstappen was punished for his language in a press conference at the Singapore Grand Prix in September.
Zawya
30-01-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Stats SA updates its inflation basket
Stats SA has updated its consumer inflation basket for the first time since 2022, including items like rosé wine, air fryers and streaming services to reflect changes in spending habits. Patrick Kelly, head of price statistics at Statistics South Africa, said it was difficult to gauge what impact the update would have on upcoming inflation releases given subtle shifts in the weighting of some items. Consumer inflation currently sits at the bottom of the central bank's target range, which has allowed it to cut interest rates at its last two meetings. Another rate cut is expected this week. The update involved adding 71 products to the basket, removing 53 and reorganising 29 through merging, splitting or reclassification, the statistics agency said on Tuesday, 28 January 2025. There are now 391 items in the basket, down from 396 previously. Housing and utilities, food and non-alcoholic beverages, and transport continue to have the biggest weightings in the basket. Statistics South Africa's Kelly said the weight of the food and non-alcoholic beverages category had risen while it had fallen for housing and utilities, suggesting the overall impact on headline inflation was likely to be muted. The changes were informed by the results of a 2022/23 household income and expenditure survey. The survey showed real average annual household income fell to about R204,000 in 2023 from R206,000 in 2015. It also highlighted persistent racial disparities more than three decades after apartheid ended, with more than 45% of Black African households spending less than around R25,000 annually, showing they experience the worst financial constraints. All rights reserved. © 2022. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (
