Next steps for activists on the NEC letter

From @LabourList

The activists who wrote the letter to the NEC a few weeks ago, calling for tougher action from the leadership on expenses have now sent the following letter to those who took part in the campaign. Click here to see the full results of the survey.

Dear Labour Activist,

Just a short email to thank you for completing the survey we ran recently on MPs’ expenses.

NEC response
We have sent the results to all CLP representatives from the NEC urging them not to forget activists’ voices when considering the Party’s future. We have had positive responses back – it is clear that there is still a long way to go before the Party’s reputation is restored on this issue.

However, it has been brought to our attention that the NEC will not be meeting again until the 21st July.

We feel that this is too long a delay for the Party’s voice to be heard in this debate, particularly given the current political circumstances, which is why we are supporting the call by NEC members and activists to have an urgent NEC meeting before the end of June – to discuss the current situation and recent election results.

If you agree, could you raise the following resolution at your next CLP EC, GC or branch meeting? If the motion is successful please get your CLP secretary or branch secretary to email it to the NEC chair, Cath Speight ([email protected]). If you could copy [email protected] in, we would be very grateful!

Resolution – Labour Party NEC
[Insert name of branch/CLP/trade union/socialist society] calls on the chair of the NEC to convene an extra NEC meeting before the end of June to review the results of the European, English county council and new unitary authority elections, party strategy and organisation; so that:

* All party members are fully involved in current and future policy making

* The next manifesto fully reflects Labour values

Which are both essential if the Party is to mobilise all members and supporters in the forthcoming General Election campaign.

Next Steps
We are now going to carry out further analysis on the results, particularly on the answers to the policy question. Now we have begun to make our voices heard on the issues of expenses we feel that we should build on this pressure. We will get back to you in due course to discuss how you want us to take forward your many policy ideas.

We believe that it is crucial that the next Labour manifesto accurately portrays the views of party members. This will ensure we have an activist base which is both inspired and motivated to help Labour to win at the next election. Party members are the heart and soul of the Labour Party and deserve a voice in its future direction, not just its current difficulties.

Thank you for terrific support and we will keep you updated.

In solidarity,

Cllr. Richard Bingley
(Former Labour Party Press Officer)

Fred Grindrod
(National Policy Forum and Former Parliamentary Candidate)

Beryl Milnes
(Former Chair of Hemel Hempstead CLP)

Tom Flynn
(Labour Parliamentary Candidate)