FT Journalists have penned a letter to new owner Nikkei requesting "past and present freedoms" to remain.

Around 200 journalists from the Financial Times have signed a letter to Nikkei.

The letter asks that the company "enshrine past and present freedoms" in the governance of the newspaper.

Nikkei, a Japanese company, signed an £844M deal to buy the FT from Pearson.

Pearson had owned the FT since 1957, but Nikkei sealed the deal in July 2015.

Sir David Bell, former chairman of the FT Group, said at the time that it is " imperative that there are independently audited safeguards to protect the independence of the FT”.

Geoffrey Owen, Richard Lambert and Andrew Gowers, three former FT editors, wrote to the letters page of the FT, stating “There is nothing at present in the governance structures of the publication to guarantee the continued independence of the editor. Since this is the key to the FT and to what it stands for, Nikkei would do well to put this right.”

The statement, signed by more than 200 FT Journalists, reads in full:

'Dear friends at Nikkei,

As FT journalists and NUJ members we would like to thank you for your warm letter of welcome and assurances about investing in our future. We note also your public statement that the Financial Times will retain complete editorial independence under your ownership.

For more than 50 years the FT has benefited from the stability and protection offered by continuous ownership by Pearson, a company that allowed the "quality and integrity" that you single out to flourish. This culture has meant a lot to present and former staff and editors and clearly means much to our readers.

As part of the close communications that you urge in your letter, we would like to work with Nikkei managers to enshrine past and present freedoms in our governance. There are precedents for this at other European titles such as Les Echos and The Economist and any new policy may even mirror your own ideas of employee participation as embodied in your partnership. While not in itself a guarantee of editorial independence, such a structure would be a clear statement of intent.

This joint initiative would highlight FT values and send a strong signal to our readers. We also believe that it could only be seen as beneficial for the reputations of both Nikkei and the Financial Times.

As a starting point, this meeting requests that Nikkei executives meet senior FT staff and union representatives to discuss the immediate concern raised by three former FT editors: "There is nothing at present in the governance structures of the publication to guarantee the continued independence of the editor. Since this is the key to the FT and to what it stands for, Nikkei would do well to put this right." [Letter to the FT, 24 July, from Geoffrey Owen, Editor 1981-1990; Richard Lambert Editor, 1991-2001; Andrew Gowers, Editor 2001-2005].

Neither a company's culture nor its institutional structure can alone ensure continued editorial independence but together they offer the best long-term guarantee for the integrity that makes the FT a success.'