Another memo to David Evans: my ideas to fix Labour’s governance deficit

I recently wrote a ‘memo’ to Labour’s new general secretary, David Evans, that coincided with his start in the role. I detailed the importance of fixing the ‘governance deficit’ in the party starting with the party’s ruling national executive committee (NEC).

I was pleased that David had read the memo published in LabourList and referred to it in his first NEC meeting. I was also pleased that NEC members from across the left-right spectrum have spoken up in support of dealing with these issues at successive NEC meetings. And when I received a letter from David sent to all NEC members acknowledging the concerns and requesting our ideas and suggestions for change, I was not just pleased but also relieved that we have a general secretary who understands the need for change and, even with an overflowing in-tray, is still willing to consider new ideas for improvement.

I wrote back to David with my suggestions, and my second memo to the general secretary said the following.

I believe that, as the administrative authority of the party, the operation of the NEC should be subject to high levels of transparency to our members and affiliates with appropriate mechanisms of accountability to all our stakeholders.

Transparency in the context of the NEC is about creating a state of openness in which there is a presumption that information will be made available to our members and affiliates rather than hidden. It is the basis on which communications are likely to be most effective, and it is a fundamental requirement for effective accountability. In a party divided by factionalism in recent years, it is also the basis on which trust and unity will be built.

Below are my thoughts and ideas, in no particular order, on how we can improve how Labour’s NEC operates and how can support NEC members in their roles. My proposals are put forward with transparency and accountability at their heart.

1. There are terms of reference for the NEC and all its committees and sub-committees. These should be published, which would allow members to know the respective powers and responsibilities of the NEC and each of its committees and sub-committees.
2. The terms of reference for the NEC require the general secretary to annually propose a scheme of delegation, and for the NEC to approve it. There is no scheme of delegation currently in place. This should be produced as a matter of urgency – and published.
3. Agendas, minutes and papers of NEC meetings and meetings of its committees and sub-committees should be published. Provision should be made for the non-publication of papers relating to items of a confidential nature.
4. Consideration should be given for NEC meetings and meetings of its committees and sub-committees to be live-streamed. Those meetings discussing confidential items, or the parts of a meeting discussing items of a confidential nature, should remain private.  
5. Preference should be for reports by senior staff and officials including by the leader, deputy leader and general secretary to be in writing. This will aid publishing information, with provisions made for confidential aspects not to be published, and will assist in reducing the time often spent on reports being presented verbally.
6. The terms of reference for the NEC identify the key functions of the NEC, including in relation to matters of a legal nature. But the previous general secretary stated in writing that “NEC members have no direct role in legal matters”. This needs clarifying. We must all know where legal responsibilities rest and the respective roles in dealing with such matters.
7. I was pleased to hear of your intention to bring forward a code of conduct for NEC members.  A code of conduct would help set standards and expectations in respect of our communications and how we behave towards each other, maintaining confidentiality, always acting in the best interests of the party and appropriate use of party resources including data amongst other matters.
8. Many of our members adhere to the Nolan Principles, which describe the behaviours expected of individuals in public life. Party members who wish to become local councillors are required to demonstrate awareness of the Nolan Principles at an interview before even being accepted to the panel of candidates. NEC members should be required to comply with the Nolan Principles.
9. A policy on managing interests should be agreed. As a minimum, it should require all NEC members to complete an annual register of interests and to declare any interest in any matter to be discussed. Members would then recuse themselves from a discussion if necessary.
10. As a Labour NEC member elected by party members in the local party section, I am aware there is a great deal of interest amongst members of my activities. One of the commitments I made when standing for election was to report back to members about my activities as a NEC member. It would be helpful for access to be provided to CLP secretaries and even directly of party members for sharing these reports.
11. We should have mechanisms for holding NEC members in the CLP section to account. This could include electing NEC CLP section members on a regional basis, thus allowing closer links between NEC members and their electorate. Provision should be made at regional and national conferences for party members to engage directly with NEC CLP section members.
12. There needs to be more transparency around party finances, in terms of both more openness and participation by NEC members. Key aspects where more openness would be appreciated by members and affiliates is around our budget setting, including priorities for spending, level of membership fees, distribution of funding to CLPs and our fundraising.  
13. The party needs to carry out regular diversity audits of party staff and advisors across all equality strands and produce an action plan to address any deficiencies in diversity. These should be disclosed to the NEC and should be published. 
14. The NEC regularly makes decisions that often result in an increased workload for our volunteer party officers, particularly CLP secretaries and chairs. We should consider arranging online consultations on key issues before and after NEC meetings to consult and report back on key decisions. This would take account of the expertise and experiences of those who will be subject to decisions or will be implementing them.
15. NEC members representing the CLP section receive many emails from individual party members regarding casework. Protocols for dealing with casework should be established to define communication routes and timelines to ensure expectations are realistic.
16. It is widely accepted that current monitoring and data collection in respect of party membership is quite poor, particularly when it comes to equality strands. Labour should be transparent about what data it currently monitors and holds, and should publish that data on a regular basis.
17. With a large volume of disputes cases being dealt with, and with many people involved in investigating and determining cases, it would be appropriate to have in place a quality assurance framework to review the party’s handling of such cases. Such a framework could consider the application of our policies, timescales, quality of communications and consistency in the investigations and contents of reports, including recommendations as well as the deliberations of the NEC panels.
18. Data about the progression of disputes cases should be published on a regular basis. The efficient functioning of the party’s disputes processes is a matter of great interest but is also important for ensuring a fair system.

I don’t expect all of these suggestions to be implemented immediately, but I certainly hope they will be useful to provoke further debate and discussion. And it’s important that these discussions are themselves transparent and involve our diverse membership. Getting our governance right is important – and I will continue working towards that aim.