Party elections: Why we need Labour left reps shaping conference

The next general election is fast approaching, so this year’s Labour conference provides the perfect opportunity for Labour to offer bold, transformative policies to fix the Tories’ broken Britain. It’s also where a series of key internal elections will take place, including for the conference arrangements committee (CAC).

Labour conference, our party’s sovereign body, exists to provide a democratic space for party members and affiliated trade unions to set the agenda on policy and agree the party’s rules. It’s why it’s essential that the CAC, who are in charge of determining the agenda, maintains a commitment to party democracy by enabling all members to contribute.

That’s why we’re standing to be the Constituency Labour Party (CLP) representatives on the CAC: to ensure the Labour Party rulebook is used fairly and not manipulated to benefit any faction or powerful lobby.

With Britain on the brink after 13 years of Tory misrule, it’s essential we harness the energy of our labour movement. After all, whether it’s trade unions in their workplaces or members in our communities, we are the ones facing the brunt of the Tories’ failures, and we are the ones who know what’s needed to fix it.

And from the renationalisation of our public services, the imposition of wealth taxes to investment in a green new deal, members and unions are united behind a transformative programme. What’s more, poll after poll shows that these policies enjoy huge popularity amongst a public sick and tired of Tory austerity and privatisation. Conference offers a national stage to ensure transparent discussions of key issues take place, and our party’s decisions are democratically decided, as both election and manifesto loom.

We need democracy, then, not just to live up to our democratic socialist values, but to help ensure bold policies are debated that can secure a lasting Labour majority for years to come. People are hungry for real change and real democracy, not backroom stitch-ups. As such, the sovereignty of conference must be respected and the policy it sets must not be ignored.

Since 2017, Jean has been a CAC representative for the women’s conference, so has experience dealing with the pitfalls of procedure. Jean’s positions are clear. Labour conference must be democratic at every stage, with motions that pass becoming Labour policy. The will of delegates must determine the wording of composite motions and decisions on motions must be fair, transparent and accountable to members. And for everyone to take part, conference must be as accessible as possible, with any issues for disabled delegates that arise resolved promptly.

Stressing the importance of democracy at conference should come easily, yet such commitments have rung hollow in recent times, where a return to pageantry has come at the cost of party democracy.

As a co-founder of the campaign group Labour for a Green New Deal, Chris witnessed firsthand anti-democratic manoeuvres to block certain motions, which further eroded democracy and increased distrust in the conference process. Throughout conference 2022, for example, efforts were made to halt motions that endorsed a green new deal, a policy that remains overwhelmingly popular at the grassroots.

This comes as no surprise since key tenets of Keir Starmer’s ten pledges have been left by the wayside, with former rallying cries for public ownership – which were democratically agreed at conference – replaced with corporate-speak and vague “securonomics“.

Inhibiting debate isn’t how conference should work; indeed it is counterproductive. Any attempts to circumvent a members-led conference should be halted. Members and trade unions are the lifeblood of the party and its greatest strength, contributing to a winning policy agenda and bringing it to the Labour doorstep. Labour must embrace a fully collaborative process in which everyone feels they have a stake in the policy platform the party stands on at the next election. So the onus is on the CAC to guarantee that delegates are not demoted to mere extras of a stage-managed show.

If elected, we’ll do all we can to hear from all delegates across the labour movement in an arena that thrives on rigorous and comradely debate.

With our public services in the gutter, our education system on its knees and a climate crisis ravaging our planet, Labour is in prime position to topple this reckless Tory government. The hundreds of thousands of Labour members and trade unionists are not just a vital grassroots force in this election battle – we offer the ideas to make Britain work for all its people, not just the wealthy few.

A Labour conference that mobilises the many rather than the few only strengthens our party. And we will work to make sure all members get their say – but we need your help to do so. You can nominate us in your CLPs by this Friday June 23rd, where you can also make sure to send delegates to conference who are likely to vote for us. It’s our wish to provide a fairer and more democratic Labour conference, one where our members and trade unions are put first.

Jean Crocker and Chris Saltmarsh are standing for Labour’s conference arrangements committee. Their candidacy has been backed by the Centre-Left Grassroots Alliance (CLGA).