Jordan offered free Middle East F1 R&D facilities

Jordan told The Times: "We [in the European Union] are being squeezed by a number of things which lead me to ask the people of Britain not to allow the demise of F1 in this country. There are so many countries outside Europe desperate for our technological skills and willing to back us. Their universities want to expose their students to state-of-the-art technology and we need the results - and we wouldn't have to pay. It would be a win-win situation and Britain needs to be very careful of it."

Referring to the EU Working Week Directive, which would limit workers in Britain to a maximum 35-hour week, Jordan added: "How could we justify spending £30m on a new wind tunnel if we could only run it 35 hours a week? It would make more sense to put a wind tunnel in a country where the state or a university pays for it, we supply the technology, and they send us the results.

"There's no immediate need to pursue these opportunities but, when the door opens, light pours in, and then you're tempted to take a look."