Charles Allen will not take up his role as chair of the British Horseracing Authority from the start of next month, British racing's governing body confirmed May 30.
A statement from the BHA said he wanted to speak to stakeholders "to better inform his vision for the sport," but was looking forward to starting once those talks were finished.
The statement came after the Racing Post revealed that last-minute discussions between the BHA and Lord Allen over British racing's governance had cast doubts over whether he would take up the position.
The BHA said: "Since Lord Allen was named as the new chair of the BHA last November he has engaged in an extensive round of meetings with stakeholders to develop a deeper and more comprehensive understanding of the issues facing the sport.
"The BHA can today confirm that Lord Allen will not now start on June 2 as he wishes to continue meeting stakeholders to better inform his vision for the sport and he looks forward to starting his new role once these have concluded."
How British racing is run has been a bone of contention for some time and changes to the governance structure introduced in 2022, which were supposed to empower the BHA board as the sport's ultimate decision-making body, have failed to quiet those concerns.
The issue was widely believed to be at the top of Lord Allen's priority list on taking on the role.
In March, interim BHA chair David Jones told the annual meeting of the National Trainers Federation that Allen had "some very strong views on governance," while acting BHA chief executive Brant Dunshea said that the issue would be "an obvious priority" for Allen given his background in business.
Allen, a City veteran who served as chief executive of ITV, was confirmed as the successor to Joe Saumarez Smith in November. His current roles include serving as chairman of international infrastructure group Balfour Beatty and e-commerce retail company THG plc, as well as serving as advisory chairman at global investment bank Moelis & Company.
He was chief adviser to the Home Office from 2006-08, while in 2012 he was appointed by Ed Miliband to the position of chairman of the management board of the Labour Party. The following year he was made a Labour life peer, taking the title Baron Allen of Kensington. He also oversaw London's bid for the 2012 Olympics and was board director on the organizing committee.
