The September NEC is always focussed on Annual Conference business. Whilst it was another long meeting, seven hours, it was curiously muted compared to recent meetings.
The meeting opened with a report on arrangements for conference from the Chair of the Conference Arrangements Committee (CAC), Harry Donaldson. He said:
· CAC has agreed which motions are valid. 330 met the criteria (covering one subject only, under 250 words long and about policy, not organisation) out of 375 submitted.
· There are 50 subject areas that will go forward to the Priority Ballot, which decides which ones get debated.
· Reference Backs on National Policy Forum (NPF) reports have been submitted in writing and will be published in the CAC reports.
· The Emergency Resolutions deadline is noon on 23 September.
· 1179 CLP delegates and 259 from affiliated organisations have registered but some may drop out or fail passport checks.
· A total of 7,000 people will attend conference.
· There are at least 350 fringe events and 84 exhibitors.
· The Business Forum has raised £110,000 in income from business visitors, and a further £143,500 has been raised in sponsorship.
We then moved on to the main business of the meeting, agreeing our position on possible rule changes to be debated at Annual Conference. was somewhat bemused by Momentum voting against even anodyne rule changes to tidy up things like deleting references to MEPs and the EPLP, despite the votes on rules they had indicated they found contentious being taken separately. IRule changes on toughening our stance towards members who litigate against the party were held over until the meeting on Friday 24 September for further consultation. Amendments from the floor saw the right of administratively suspended members to vote in OMOV ballots retained, and the number of officers of a Local Government Committee increased to 4 so that there is a quota of 2 women.
The new (not tabled at the July meeting) batch of non-contentious rule changes passed with 19 For, 9 Against, 1 Abstention.
A second batch of rule changes relate to the new independent disciplinary process for cases relating to protected characteristics, required by the EHRC Report. This was passed with 18 For, 8 Against, 1 Abstention. I was really disappointed that eight colleagues would vote against a change that is a legal requirement following the investigation into antisemitism.
The third batch of non-contentious changes already noted by the NEC in July passed 19 For, 4 Against, 3 Abstentions.
A rule change to codify STV (Single Transferable Vote) as the voting system for the ballot for the nine CLP reps on the NEC passed with 16 For, 8 Against, 3 Abstentions.
A consequent rule change to abolish NEC by-elections in the CLP section, as you can now just recount the previous STV ballot without the member who has stood down, was passed with 17 For, 9 Against, 3 Abstentions.
A rule change that prevents CLPs from affiliating to external organisations without NEC approval was passed with 19 For, 9 Against, 1 Abstention.
A rule change to place the longstanding practice of the General Secretary’s power to reject membership applications during the eight-week probationary period on a contractual/rule-based footing was passed with 17 For, 9 Against, 1 Abstention.
An extensive rewrite of the membership rules to improve the processes around auto-exclusions, including giving those expelled under this process a right to appeal for the first time, was then debated, and at this point the meeting became a bit more tense. Questions were asked about the implementation of the July NEC’s decision to proscribe four organisations. This decision could not be revisited as we have a three-month rule – you can’t reopen NEC decisions until three months after they have been taken. The General Secretary said that he refuted that the proscriptions were being implemented factionally. I argued and the General Secretary agreed that proscriptions had to be applied retrospectively to evidence of support for an organisation before it was proscribed to have any meaning. We were informed that in contrast to the noise about them being generated on social media, only 57 letters had been sent to members alleging they supported proscribed organisations, and only 5 people had been expelled. Letters are not generated automatically, complaints come in and are then assessed, in 10 cases complaints have been dismissed and not proceeded with. Members accused of support for a proscribed organisation have an opportunity to refute the allegations.
There was a proposal to defer this rule change. It was defeated by 16 votes to 11.
Ann Black proposed an amendment to remove the retrospective nature of the proscriptions. This was defeated by 18 votes to 10.
The paper itself was passed by 20 votes to 9.
We then looked at rule changes submitted by CLPs and determined the NEC’s attitude to each one.
We agreed to ask Oxford East CLP to remit their proposal regarding BAME quotas on Council Cabinets in favour of an NEC alternative which would be more tightly worded for legal reasons.
A proposal for Annual Conference to have sovereignty over disciplinary decisions of the PLP Chief Whip was defeated by 18 votes to 9.
A proposal to elect the General Secretary in an OMOV ballot was defeated by 19 votes to 7 with 1 abstention.
A proposal to allow rule changes that are similar to a previous one to be considered after less than the current three-year rule was defeated by 17 votes to 7.
A proposal about members having absolute rights to free speech was defeated by 18 votes to 9.
A proposal to use STV in the elections for every section of the NEC except the union and socialist society ones was defeated by 16 votes to 9. The argument against this is that STV in blocks of 5 or fewer seats does not produce proportional results.
A proposal to give CLP EC’s more power over by-election selections and last-minute parliamentary selections was defeated by 18 votes to 9.
A proposal to give a minimum seven-day window to apply for parliamentary selections was defeated by 17 votes to 8. Sometimes the election timetable doesn’t allow this much time.
A proposal for spending limits in leadership ballots to be in the rule book rather than decided at the start of each election was defeated by 17 votes to 8.
A proposal to limit donations from any person or organisation other than affiliates to the party was defeated without being put to a vote, as this would present an existential threat to our funding, including ending £7.7m of Government grants via “Short Money” etc. I spoke on this item and urged that we should celebrate individual high value donors giving as much as they can afford to Labour, rather than make negative assumptions about their motives.
Keir then gave his Leader’s report, covering his visits round the country to speak to people who had stopped voting Labour, the Afghanistan crisis, the Workplace Taskforce policy announcements, and preparations for Annual Conference. He said he wants a benefits system that works much better than Universal Credit, which unfairly takes 75p from the first additional £1 you earn. On Social Care he said Labour’s policy stance is to:
· Prevent people going into care homes for as long as possible.
· Have a Home First principle.
· Give the workforce proper terms and conditions and job security.
· Have those with the broadest shoulders (people with income from property, dividends, stocks and shares) pay, not working people.
Keir refuted as nonsense allegations that Marsha De Cordova had resigned as Shadow Equalities Minister over lack of progress on racial justice policies.
He said Annual Conference was the first opportunity to look beyond the Covid crisis at what kind of future we wanted, one where we deal with the inequalities exposed by Covid and tackle the climate crisis.
On disciplinary cases he said he was in a fight to rid Labour of antisemitism, not a fight against any section of the party.
After Keir’s report I was delighted that we unanimously approved new national structures for Disabled Members and Labour Students. I served on both NEC working groups, as a disabled member of the NEC and a former National Secretary of Labour Students, and it was really good that in both cases a consensus was reached. I thanked Angela Rayner for her and her team urging a compromise national committee structure for the new Labour Students organisation, which had helped ensure a consensus was reached.
Angela’s Deputy Leader’s report focused on the way the Tories are making things tougher for ordinary people through the National Insurance hike and Universal Credit cuts. She praised union involvement in the Workplace Taskforce. Asked about party unity she said we all need to accept everyone in the party is motivated by wanting to change the country for the better. When we can’t reach consensus, we need to consider whether the action or policy we are backing will help get Labour into power.
David Evans gave his General Secretary’s report. He said the restructuring process within the party was halfway through. The voluntary redundancy scheme for staff had been closed. More that 100 staff had applied but some were in key roles, so their departure had not been agreed. The process was paused while leavers were being supported. A full financial review after conference would determine the next stage. The gap between the savings from voluntary redundancies and the £5.5m savings target was narrow enough that he had assured the staff unions that there would be no need for compulsory redundancies as it could be bridged through reducing non-staff costs, managing vacancies and raising income. Support for Young Labour would be in the new staff structure.
On the Forde Report he said the party was now expecting to be given the two sections that could be published in late October or November. He said the issuing of a Notice of Investigation (NOI) to the Chair of Young Labour had been due to an error, and a full review had revealed it was because of processes not being followed properly. There was a backlog of 5,200 outstanding complaints being worked through. The Executive Director of Legal Affairs, Alex Barros-Curtis, said that the process of going through the backlog would take 6 months and was in its 7th week. External additional staff had been trained in Labour’s rules and processes to do this. 3,000 cases had been assessed so far, of which 30% had been closed at assessment stage as they did not merit investigation. The NOI to Jess Barnard had not been signed off properly but it was an innocent mistake by the person concerned. The tone of letters had been amended and staff reminded never to send them outside office hours.
Alex Barros-Curtis was asked about the new submission to the EHRC from Jewish Voice for Labour (JVL), who have claimed Labour has disproportionally expelled Jewish members. He said the party utterly refutes the submission made JVL: “Particularly that we disproportionately target them, and also that we ignore any complaints we have of theirs. Indeed, those complaints are actually in the backlog - so will be dealt with as part of the clearance project, which will mean these are resolved as swiftly as possible.”
The meeting closed with swift agreement of a series of reports on the Business Board, Women’s Conference, Sexual Harassment Procedures & Code of Conduct, and the National Policy Forum and Joint Policy Committee.
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Ann Black Writes:(Please Note: I remain concerned about the "code of conduct regarding so-called "transphobia" being seemingly discussed with the LGBT group but no mention of women's groups.)
The meeting again rapidly deviated from the timings on the agenda, and rather than finishing at 4 p.m. we eventually stopped at 7 p.m. Contrary to what newer members were told, NEC meetings do not have to be interminable, and less than five hours used to be normal. Endurance tests are bad for representatives, for staff and for the quality of decision-making.
The NEC welcomed Harry Donaldson, chair of the conference arrangements committee. He reported that 375 motions had been received, of which 330 met the criteria and were grouped into 50 topics for the priorities ballot. So far 1,179 delegates from CLPs and 259 from affiliates were registered. There would be 250+ fringe events and 98% of the exhibition space had been sold. Harry explained Covid-related measures and though not mandatory he hoped that everyone would wear masks except when speaking.
The Rules of the GameWe moved on to consider nearly 100 pages of rule changes, and I appreciate the time taken by staff to clarify details with NEC members before the meeting. Some are still work in progress and the NEC will make final decisions on the evening of Friday 24 September, so delegates will need to read fast. Many NEC proposals are tidying up, deleting (sadly) references to MEPs and replacing Welsh Assembly with Welsh Parliament. Also the rulebook will now reflect the right of Labour International members to pay concessionary subscription rates on the same basis as UK-based members.
Others are sensible, for instance allowing priorities ballots before conference so that compositing can be planned in advance. Allowing assistant conference chairs to come from any section of the NEC simply reflects longstanding practice. Waiving the 12-month membership requirement for council candidates would again be delegated to regional directors. And a proposal to withdraw even the right to vote from suspended members was dropped amid general opposition. When people are barred from all party activity for many months they should at least be able to cast an occasional online ballot in exchange for their £53.
Moving to local government committees (LGCs), the current rules say that at least 50% of the three officers (chair, vice-chair and secretary) must be women. Taken literally this means at least two, but we were told that specifying either one or two might be legally problematic. The ingenious solution was to add a second vice-chair, so that two of the four officers must be women. The NEC rightly agreed to add up to two Co-operative Party delegates, but the rules are now inconsistent because they still say that membership will be in three sections (CLPs, trade unions and councillors) each holding one-third of the votes. Sorting out the fudge would be deferred till someone devises a solution or till the end of time, whichever is sooner.
Some queried the “probationary period of provisional membership” and the general secretary’s ability to reject a member during their first eight weeks. This already happens, and CLPs can also object. Although the use of “provisional” alongside “probationary” is a bit confusing, this was carried 17 for, 9 against, 1 abstention. All the rest of the first batch was carried 19 for, 9 against, 1 abstention.
Following the PlanThe second batch implemented the new independent disciplinary procedures agreed at the last meeting, and includes a requirement for all candidates for public office or internal party positions to agree to undertake training, for instance on equality and diversity. It was clarified that the EHRC (equality and human rights commission) action plan allows current processes to continue until the end of 2021 while the new structures are being set up. This section was agreed with 18 for, 8 against and 1 abstention.
The third batch contained proposals originally tabled in July. The first vote was on enshrining single transferable voting for the constituency section of the NEC, opposed by some on the grounds that it should apply to the councillors and MPs’ sections as well. The response was that with only a few candidates STV and first-past-the post give the same result (which I don’t understand, but we returned to this later). The NEC voted in favour, with 16 for, 8 against, 3 abstentions. The meeting then voted for any vacancies in the CLP section to be filled by recounting the previous STV ballot rather than holding expensive by-elections or leaving vacancies, with 17 in favour, 9 against, 3 abstentions. By-elections were introduced three years ago, and I am happy to see them go. No faction should hold 100% of the places on 60% of the vote. However by-elections will still be held for vacancies in all other sections.
The NEC also agreed that CLPs should not affiliate to or support any organisation without our permission, with 19 for, 9 against and 1 abstention. This does not prevent working closely with others on common aims, but currently there is no regulation, which opens the party to reputational risk. The rest of this batch was carried with 19 in favour, 4 against, and 3 abstentions. On all these decisions I voted with the majority.
“When I use a word, it means just what I choose it to mean …”
as Humpty Dumpty said in Through the Looking Glass. In discussing new proposals on expulsion no-one suggested reversing July’s decisions on proscribed organisations. However I was deeply unhappy with subsequent developments. For Socialist Appeal support had been defined thus:
That it considers, inter alia, that the following acts constitute “support” for Socialist Appeal under Chapter 2, Clause I.4.B of the Labour Party Rule Book:
- Selling the Socialist Appeal newspaper;
- Writing for the Socialist Appeal newspaper;
- Running Socialist Appeal street stalls;
- Describing oneself as a supporter of Socialist Appeal
and similarly for other banned groups. I was shocked to find that some members were sent a couple of old Facebook likes and threatened that “failure to make written representations, or to provide a compelling reason to extend this deadline within seven days will lead to your automatic exclusion from the party”. No ifs, no buts, no NEC involvement, just out. This extends “inter alia” beyond all reasonable limits, and I was among those who believed that proscription would not be applied retrospectively. Some letters also included incorrect dates.
I lived through the 2016 leadership election when the party actively trawled social media for incriminating evidence and I never want to go back there. However we were informed that only 57 such letters had been sent, only five people had actually been expelled, and the party had acted only on complaints received. So I withdraw the suspicion of wholesale trawling, though the alternative – that recipients of these letters were reported by other individuals – may be more disturbing and harder to deal with.
Other members said that when Militant was proscribed this was not applied retrospectively, and asked whether these rules would exclude Tories or LibDems crossing the floor, to which the answer was No because they have renounced their former allegiance. The language became uncomradely on both sides, with regrettable references to leeches and witchfinders.
A proposal to defer the paper was rejected, with 11 in favour (including me) and 16 against, and my attempt to rule out retrospective application was defeated by 18 votes to 10. Further work would be done on words around court action. There were positive elements in that members would become able to challenge auto-exclusion if this was judged disproportionate, which might apply to signing a nomination paper for a friend in ignorance. For this reason I voted for the final version, carried with 20 in favour and 9 against.
Grassroots VoicesThe last section concerned constitutional amendments from CLPs, where the NEC recommends and conference decides. Members were sympathetic to Oxford East’s aims in proposing that Labour groups could set minimum numbers of BAME (Black, Asian and minority ethnic) members when electing their cabinet. Reservations were that some Labour groups might make unlawful changes, and the amendment was unnecessary because the NEC can already authorise variations to standing orders in chapter 13 of the rulebook. The head of the governance and legal unit and the chair of the organisation committee would discuss positive ways forward with the delegate.
The NEC then agreed to oppose the following (I voted with the majority except where otherwise stated):
Presenting a report from the parliamentary Labour party to conference, and allowing conference to vote on disciplinary actions against an MP (18 votes to 8). Debating individual suspensions openly could have legal consequences. I suggested resolving the situation which gave rise to these amendments, and certainly before we start selecting candidates. (I also wondered about similarities with 1995, when conference voted on Liz Davies’ parliamentary candidacy for Leeds North East.)
- Electing the general secretary (19 votes to 7). The procedure was not workable, for instance if there were fewer than eight applicants, and would break employment law. Members might elect the person for political reasons, while the NEC would appoint someone with the ability to manage a large organisation. Also an elected general secretary with their own mandate could be in conflict with the elected NEC.
- Allow similar rule changes to be discussed more often than every four years, if backed by five CLPs (17 votes to 7). I voted for this, as sometimes amendments are excluded on too sweeping a basis.
- Stating every member’s right to freedom of speech without interference (18 votes to 9). This was internally contradictory, as it said that the NEC shall issue no instructions, but also that restrictions will ensure compliance with legal and financial responsibilities and protect against defamation. Presumably it is the NEC which has to specify these restrictions.
- Use STV for all sections of the NEC except affiliated organisations (16 votes to 9). I voted for this. STV can apply perfectly well with only one or two people.
- For parliamentary by-elections, snap elections or any situation where a full selection cannot be held, give the executive committee a majority on the shortlisting panel, and power to choose the candidate if there is no time for hustings (18 votes to 9). When I was last on the NEC the pressure was to take power away from executive committees, seen as factional cliques, and that may not have changed. Others believed that CLPs operating in isolation would prevent the NEC using all-women shortlists or positive action and would likely lead to more CLPs choosing favourite sons. (There is widespread resentment that dozens of constituencies could not select their candidates in two successive general elections, and Keir Starmer promised no more impositions, but the best way to deal with this is for the NEC to turn its attention urgently to starting selections.)
- Set a minimum seven-day window for members to apply for parliamentary selections (17 votes to 8). Sometimes by-election timetables don’t allow seven days.
- Define spending limits for leadership elections (17 votes to 8). Currently these are set by the procedures committee, which needs freedom to vary amounts for each election.
- Rejecting donations from any organisation except trade unions or co-operative societies, and donations of more than £10,000 from any living individual. The first part would immediately lose up to £8 million of public funding, including Short money, and bankrupt the party. The second part ascribed ulterior motives to anyone giving to the party. Many supporters dig deep: for some that means £5, for those who are lucky it may be much more. Perhaps because NEC members are personally liable for party debts no-one pushed this to a vote.
Question Time
We were now running three hours behind schedule and it was 5 p.m. when Keir Starmer was able to speak. From in-depth visits around the country he believed that Boris Johnson’s appeal was wearing thin. People wanted change and were open to Labour if we gave them reasons to vote for us. Like many MPs he was dealing with agonising cases following the Taliban takeover in Afghanistan, where the consequences were predictable and had been predicted. He thanked Angela Rayner and Andy McDonald for their new deal for workers, highlighted in his TUC speech and criticised Boris Johnson’s non-plan for social care.
Members praised Labour for defending the £20 uplift in universal credit and urged support for increased legacy benefits for disabled people and others. I asked for a riposte to the Tory attack line that “Labour will scrap universal credit”, which suggests getting rid of all benefits. Keir Starmer explained our commitment to replacing UC with a better system. Anyone working extra hours currently loses 75p in every pound, there is a five-week wait, and payment to the head of the household endangers victims of domestic abuse. Some of us know that, but we need five words that Labour MPs can shout back in parliament and repeat in every interview, and activists can use on the doorstep. Similarly with health and social care: prevention is fine, as is enabling people to stay in their own homes and rewarding carers, funded by those with the broadest shoulders and from unearned income, not from working people. We need five words so that when Boris Johnson says “We have a plan, he has no plan” we have a snappy response ready. And “Captain Hindsight” should be firmly nailed to the former foreign secretary, who said that with hindsight he would not have gone on holiday when Kabul was about to fall.
Keir Starmer said he would meet Scottish local government workers and the Gypsy, Roma and Travellers working group as soon as possible He agreed that a £10 minimum wage was only a starting point, and that properly staffed ticket offices were essential in reviving rail travel. Britain should be assisting with vaccine distribution worldwide, where Tory cuts in international aid were particularly shameful. Labour would push back on the courts and sentencing bill, and highlight the impact of national insurance rises. Coupled with UC cuts some families will lose more than £1,000 a year. Labour had to regain its pre-eminence as the party of working people. He said that conference would be a fantastic opportunity to put Covid behind us and make our arguments for tackling the climate crisis and building a better, brighter future. My second question, on whether he would support the 140+ CLPs who sent motions to conference on proportional representation, got lost, though I think I heard the chair mutter “I hope not!”.
Moving On
The NEC endorsed papers on the national disabled members’ organisation and the new Labour Students structure, agreed by small groups through consensus. Deputy leader Angela Rayner drew attention to next week’s opposition day debate on the cost of living, with energy prices going through the roof and inflation back to 1990s levels. She thanked Jonathan Reynolds for his efforts on UC, particularly in stressing that it goes to many people in work. Asked about uniting the party she said that while there would always be differences on contentious issues, we should stick to our principles and values of decency and respect. Without previous Labour governments she would not be where she is today, and with everything she does, she always asks whether it will help to achieve our common objective of winning political power.
General Secretary’s Report
David Evans said that restructuring was a tough time for staff, and he was working closely with their unions. He was now confident that there was no need to consider compulsory redundancies. To his own and everyone else’s frustration the Forde report on the 2020 leaked document was not yet available even in partial form, and it was now promised in October/November (2021?). I asked for a report on the diversity impact of restructuring, and David promised a full diversity audit of the voluntary severance scheme.
He apologised for the distress caused to an individual who received a notice of investigation in error. This emanated from the project to clear the backlog of thousands of complaints, and procedures were being reviewed to avoid any repetition. He also committed to looking at the wording of letters to members about incidents which might have happened years ago, though serious allegations could not just be dropped. While processing outstanding complaints was on course to conclude by early 2022 my understanding is that cases will still have to be heard by NEC disputes sub-panels, which may take us into next summer.
David Evans said that the future candidates programme was still recruiting, and the NEC officers would provide oversight. He would check on the Bernie Grant and Jo Cox programmes for BAME and women. All we need now is lots of winnable seats. He had spoken with LGBT Labour about making progress on a code of conduct regarding transphobia. By the NEC meeting in November he hoped to have a scheme of delegated powers, clarifying who has the authority to do what, and recommendations for improving the working of the NEC, collected last November. Hopefully we will have time to discuss these.
Wrapping Up
The meeting noted new sexual harassment procedures and reports from the business board, the women’s conference, the national policy forum and the joint policy committee. The NEC has not yet received any proposals arising from the policy development review, though various drafts are in circulation. I believe there is now no time to reach agreement on significant changes before Brighton, and no point in tinkering at the edges. The joint policy committee is particularly unrepresentative, dominated by the shadow cabinet and with no CLP members for more than two years, but that cannot be fixed in five days.
After waiting patiently for over three hours the national women’s officer sought, and gained, NEC approval for the next national women’s conference in spring 2022. I hope to have dates and details soon, so that CLPs can plan to elect delegates and pay their fees, travel and accommodation.
