Posted by Peter Willsman

Support Katy Clark and Jon Lansman for the Conference Arrangements Committee

Clark & Lansman for CAC v1Although most Labour Party members are now focused mainly on working for a Labour victory in the general election, there are some important internal party elections shortly after 7 May. Since the closing date for nominations in those elections is 10 June and many constituency parties won’t even have a cycle of meetings before that date, many are considering their nominations now and readers of Left Futures need to know who is standing from Labour’s Centre-Left for the positions up for election.

There are three important national committees on which constituency party representatives are up for election: Continue reading →

A woman for all seasons – Georgiana Burne-Jones (continued)

Frederick_Hollyer_portrait_of_Georgiana_Burne-Jones_c1882Steve Williams has written an account of the political activity of the remarkable Georgiana Burne-Jones in Rottingdean, near Brighton, from her arrival there in 1880 until her death in 1920. Here Peter Willsman continues his digested summary for readers (you can read the first part here).

In the lead-up to the Boer War Georgiana declared against British military action and was a signatory of a national petition in favour of a ‘patient and pacific policy’ of negotiation. She joined the South African Conciliation Committee and was active in its Women’s section. Georgiana was dismayed when her nephew, Rudyard Kipling, who also lived in the village, became a focus for support for the war, whipping up jingoism among the locals. This manifested itself on the day peace was declared in 1902 in a protest against a custom made banner – Georgiana was an able embrioderess – hanging from her house condemning the war and its outcome. Kipling interceded to protect his aunt and the local policeman advised Georgiana to take the banner down, which she did. Continue reading →

A woman for all seasons – Georgiana Burne-Jones

Frederick_Hollyer_portrait_of_Georgiana_Burne-Jones_c1882Steve Williams has written an account of the political activity of the remarkable Georgiana Burne-Jones in Rottingdean, near Brighton, from her arrival there in 1880 until her death in 1920. Here Peter Willsman who worked with Steve at the head office of public sector union NUPE (now part of Unison) has digested his account together with material from William Morris to assemble the following summary for readers.

Georgiana (née MacDonald) was married to the artist Sir Edward Burne-Jones. Edward (just plain Ted Jones at this time) and William Morris were students and best friends at Exeter College, Oxford in the 1850s. A number of the Oxford colleges have stained glass windows designed by Morris and Burne-Jones and, of course, there are the ceiling murals in Oxford Union Library which was the outcome of a collaborative effort of the two men and their friends led by the established pre-Raphaelite artist, Dante Gabriel Rossetti. Through Edward, Georgiana grew close to Morris and they remained mutual confidants until Morris’s death in 1896. A friend once remarked that between them there was a ‘spiritual affinity’. Continue reading →

Democratic changes up for decision at Labour’s conference next week

Conference PreviewAt Labour’s conference in Manchester next week, delegates will be debating and voting on a number of key changes to the party’s rule book, tabled both by the national executive and by constituency parties. Grassroots proposals, under an obscure convention (known as the ‘1968 Ruling’) have been delayed for a year but the executive can agree rule changes one week and have them voted on by conference the following week!

It is vital that delegates ensure that constituency party proposals are given a fair hearing not brushed aside. Last year, in addition to the rule changes from that have been accepted by the conference arrangements committee for debate this year, there were no fewer than eight further rule changes proposed by  14 constituencies (Bermondsey & Old Southwark; West Ham; Bolsover; Runnymede & Weybridge; Maidstone & The Weald; Bridgend; Great Grimsby; Meriden; Newport West; Saffron Walden; Wirral West; Bracknell; Epsom & Ewell and Redcar) ruled out of order. Continue reading →

Labour’s policy process: the stitch ups of old

Gordon Brown at the NPF 2008This weekend, Labour’s national policy forum (NPF) meets in Milton Keynes for the last time before the general election. It will agree a programme which will be put to Labour Party conference for agreement in September. The last time the forum met to do this, known as “Warwick II”, was in 2008 with Gordon Brown as prime minister. Although at that time NPF constituency reps were not elected by OMOV, and every single one was the leadership’s favoured candidate “elected” at conference, the rest of the process this time has been similar in most respects. Here is Peter Willsman’s account of those proceedings, abridged from The saga of Warwick II in Campaign Briefing, published by the Campaign for Labour Party Democracy in Autumn 2008 . Continue reading →