Ann Black: Why I’m standing to represent local parties on Labour’s NEC

Why I am standing

When I left Labour’s national executive committee (NEC) two years ago, a comeback was the last thing on my mind. The party was polarised between rival slates, and to quote Nye Bevan: “We know what happens to people who stay in the middle of the road. They get run over!” So, what has changed?

The party has changed. More than 100,000 members left between 2017 and late 2019, and over 120,000 joined by February 2020. Keir Starmer was elected leader with 56% of the vote, close to Jeremy Corbyn’s mandates of 60% and 62%. After the bitter 2016 leadership contest and December’s crushing defeat, there is a renewed desire to unite and work towards electing a Labour government. I believe I can contribute to that goal. The new single transferable vote system to elect local party reps will allow space for left independent voices, and a diverse constituency section that fully reflects the membership.

Through 18 years on the NEC, I acted according to consistent principles, for left policies, and for party democracy and members’ rights. I opposed war in Iraq, Trident and privatisation, and supported council housing, public services and decent benefits and pensions. I achieved one-member-one-vote elections to the national policy forum and helped to get Diane Abbott on the 2010 leadership ballot. In 2016, I voted for Jeremy Corbyn to be included without needing fresh nominations, and against a six-month qualifying period.

Reports of every meeting are at annblack.co.uk. I’m happy to discuss my record, but I also want to look to the future. My pledges include the following.

Working together

I will be loyal to Keir Starmer and Angela Rayner, as I have been to all previous leaders. I will argue forcefully for members, and that sometimes means disagreement, but I have never called for the leader to resign. It was wrong in Jeremy Corbyn’s time and it is wrong now. That loyalty should extend to Labour councillors. The central Tory government has defunded local services for ten years and that is where the blame must be laid, not with councillors working to bring Labour values to their communities. In difficult situations, strong links with trade unions are essential. As a UNISON steward for 30 years, I know the pressures, but I also know that working people need a Labour government.

Rebuilding after four election defeats requires an honest look at the challenges and how Labour can meet them. I recommend the Labour Together review. It’s as non-factional as is possible these days, and I hope the new NEC will consider its proposals seriously.

Ensuring that our party is a safe and inclusive place for all members should be a priority for the NEC. I support independent sexual harassment complaints procedures, and stand for zero tolerance of antisemitism and all forms of hatred and discrimination.

Reconnecting with members

For 18 years, I consulted and reported back, explaining how I voted and why. Members shouldn’t have to rely on leaks and Twitter. I would maintain this record, and am happy to visit branches and constituencies, remotely or in person.

During lockdown, local party business was suspended for four months, and that was too long.  Secret ballots for selecting candidates and electing officers must be watertight, but motions are usually decided on shows of hands and could have continued remotely. And while online meetings exclude some members without access to technology, others have been excluded from physical meetings due to disability, caring responsibilities or travel issues and are joining in for the first time.  For the future, I would like to combine the best of both worlds.

As NEC vice-chair for women, I steered women’s conference to independence in 2019. Sadly plans for 2020 fell off the agenda when I left the NEC and, with the coronavirus still untamed, doubts hang over 2021. I will make sure that women’s organisation is not relegated to second place again.

Transformative policies

The NEC does not make policy directly, but it oversees policy-making processes, including the national policy forum (NPF), with conference having the final say. The NPF has barely met since 2014, though policy commissions – which bring together shadow ministers, NPF representatives and NEC members – are producing documents again. After 22 years, most members still don’t know who speaks for them on the NPF, and radical reform – promised in the 2018 democracy review – is long overdue.

The manifesto for a 2024 general election cannot be written yet, and Covid-19 is drowning out normal politics. A Tory government has been nationalising the railways, paying private sector wages and eulogising the NHS. But cracks are appearing. Private companies are profiteering from government contracts, healthcare workers from abroad are charged for the privilege of saving our lives, exam “results” are in chaos and schools will have to struggle on their own if there are further lockdowns.

The disproportionate impact of Covid-19 on BAME communities and gig economy workers, and the widening class divide, raise disturbing questions. There must be no return to austerity, and Labour should start developing principles that will inform our approach to taxation, benefits, health, education, pensions, private and social housing, the arts and the climate crisis. To my deep regret, the UK has left the European Union, but the Tories cannot be allowed to blame the consequences of a hard or, worse, a no-deal Brexit on the pandemic.

That needs the collective contribution of our 550,000 members, who bring expertise, life experience and enthusiasm. More than 170 put themselves forward for these NEC elections and, win or lose, I would like all of them invited to take part in moving ahead.

Funding democracy

For the 2017 general election, the NEC imposed candidates in every constituency. We also promised never to do it again, and for two years CLPs pleaded to choose their candidates. But because the NEC made selections even more complicated, and then prioritised trigger ballots for sitting MPs, dozens of local parties were still waiting when the 2019 election was called and candidates were again imposed. It is possible to have procedures that are both democratic and efficient. We cannot get caught napping a third time.

Membership has trebled and, while a cause for celebration, the costs and the workload for voluntary CLP officers have soared. In 2011, Labour conference agreed changes that distributed subscription income more equally between larger and smaller CLPs, but also increased central control. While on the NEC, I doubled the amount returned to CLPs – and pushed for more – but the system is no longer fit for purpose. The NEC funds, intended to support local initiatives, have stopped inviting bids, and must be overflowing while local parties struggle. Standard membership is over £50, and even the reduced rate excludes many of the people that we claim to represent. In 2018, the NEC promised a review, and it’s time to honour that commitment. I will work to deliver a fair share of subscriptions to the grassroots, and a Labour Party that is affordable for all.

I’m a member of CLPD, the Labour Movement for Europe, the Labour Campaign for Electoral Reform and the Fabian Society, and supported by Open Labour. For more information, please visit annblack.co.uk or contact me at [email protected], [email protected], or 07956637958.