You have only a few days in which to get your policy amendments in to Labour’s policy process – they must be submitted by constituency party secretaries through the Your Britain website by 13 June. Two weeks later your regional representatives on the national policy forum meet to decide which CLP proposals they wish to take forward to their crucial meeting in Milton Keynes on 18/20 July. Anything agreed at that meeting, together with any minority positions which receive the support of a quarter of the forum will go forward to Labour’s Autumn conference in Manchester.
The Labour Assembly against Austerity have produced 26 model amendments across seven policy areas which you may find useful, and which together constitute a Manifesto for Labour Growth (which you can download here and print for distribution, or just cut and paste the ones you wish to move in your local party). This manifesto includes amendments on the following subjects:
Stability and prosperity
- Emergency budget to replace tory austerity with labour growth
- Investment in infrastructure
- Top rate of income tax
Work and business
- abolishing employment tribunal fees
- legislating for a living wage
- ending the public sector pay freeze
- Ban zero-hours contracts
- improving trade union rights
- reject social security caps
- repeal the welfare reform act – abolish bedroom tax
- supporting people with disabilities
- pension and social security up-rating
- state annuities
- state pension retirement age
Living standards and sustainability
- public ownership of rail
- making rail travel affordable
- public ownership of energy and making energy affordable
- energy efficiency and cutting carbon emissions
Stronger, safer communities
- building new council housing
- making private rented housing secure and affordable
Education and children
- re-establishing local democratic accountability to schools
- introducing universal free school meals
- cutting tuition fees to improve access to higher education
- introducing universal childcare
Health and care
- ending the private finance initiative
Britain’s global role
- scrapping trident and backing nuclear disarmament
I cannot understand why we are not using Q.E. for investment in the real economy. Another 10% on top of what we have already created is hardly going to be catastrophic…
I guess that the chances of Jon’s reminder having any substantial impact at this stage is minimal. If branches and CLPs do not already have the matter in hand then it is difficult to see, what with meeting cycles, the need to circulate agendas and proposals etc, what could be done at this stage.
Beyond that, I wonder about some of the proposed amendments. I just looked at the education which I think are so inadequate that they stand no chance of succeeding. They would make the draft as a whole inconsistent. Thus on schools the only proposal is that
“Labour will reassert its support for local accountability through Local Education Authorities and
school governor boards accountable to local communities and local authorities and will return Free Schools
and Academies to LEA oversight.”
While I completely agree with the aim of this amendment it ignores the spirit of the document, reinforced by the Blunkett review which is also among the papers for consideration, according to which Labour will focus on teacher quality rather than the structure of provision.
Maybe the thinking is that planting a little seed of a contrary view without actually dealing with the rest of this awful draft policy will cause the whole thing to unravel. I think pigs will fly first.
Immodestly perhaps, I think that my analysis and proposed changes, offered here weeks ago, are more thorough and would carry more weight.
Being disabled and sick I’m just glad labour have not suggested concentration!!! sorry dam training camps.