One Member One Vote extended with a vote at conference

By Alex Smith / @alexsmith1982

Conference yesterday voted by two to one to give Labour party members the right to elect their policy-making representatives directly in the first major extension of party democracy for over a decade.

A rule change to extend one-member one vote (OMOV) for the 55 National Policy Forum (NPF) constituency section representatives (five for each Labour Party region) was debated and voted on yesterday. The result was announced by the Conference Arrangements Committee.

This new system replaces election of NPF constituency representatives by conference delegates.

STLP chair Peter Kenyon, who sits on the Party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) said:

“This send a clear signal to members that they are vital to the Labour Party’s future. The result is a major breakthrough arising from the 15-member LabOUR Commission’s Interim Report on Party Renewal published two years ago.”

In another development, a major review of party structures was promised yesterday by the Party’s NEC immediately after the 2010 General Election. This will include other LabOUR Commission recommendations, including a Charter of Members’ Rights and a Code of Ethics which were on the agenda for the 2009 conference, but not discussed.

STLP will write to CLPs and branches seeking support across the Party for comprehensive proposals to strength party democracy further after the next General Election. In the meantime, STLP is launching a campaign to enable members and constituencies to have a say in the 2010 election manifesto, which will have to be signed off before the new party election arrangements come into effect.