Party should be mandated to implement conference votes, poll suggests

Almost half of Labour members believe the party should be mandated to implement the result of votes at their annual conference, polling reveals.

Exclusive polling for LabourList conducted by Survation found that 46% of Labour members polled said the party leadership should implement the decisions made on conference floor, while 38% said the party should remain free not to do so.

The poll found that members aged 45-54 were the most supportive of mandating conference motions, with 51% backing such a move and 34% against.

Members who backed Rebecca Long-Bailey in the 2020 leadership election were also very supportive of forcing the party leadership to implement conference decisions, with 85% supportive, compared to just 33% each among those who backed Keir Starmer and Lisa Nandy respectively.

It comes as Labour activists head to Liverpool for the return of party conference, with discussions around Palestine, artificial intelligence and the two-child benefit cap expected to dominate conversation.

Recent conference motions that have gone against the view of the party leadership include a demand to reverse cuts to the winter fuel allowance and a 2022 vote in support of implementing proportional representation for general elections.

The poll is the latest in a series of regular polls LabourList is publishing in partnership with leading pollsters Survation, a member of the British Polling Council and a Market Research Society Partner.

Survation surveyed 1,021 readers of LabourList, the leading dedicated newsletter and news and comment website for Labour supporters, who also said they were Labour Party members between August 5 and August 9.

Data was weighted to the profile of party members by age, sex, region and 2020 Labour leadership vote, targets for which were derived from the British Election Study and the results of the 2020 leadership election.

READ MORE: Labour Party Conference 2025: Full LabourList events programme, revealed

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