- Conference
- 2008 National Delegate Conference
- Date
- 26 February 2008
- Decision
- Carried as Amended
Conference recognises that UNISON members are increasingly angry at the continued onslaught on public services, workers jobs, wages and conditions by the New Labour government and its policies.
Conference also notes that in 2005 Conference agreed to call on UNISON Labour Link to publish the voting record of the UNISON groups of MPs.
It is clear the government has no intention of letting up, and is pursuing further privatisation of services, and is intent on imposing a pay freeze on millions.
Conference notes the publication of the Hayden Phillips report on the Funding of Political Parties, recognising:
a)it represents a serious challenge to the union’s lobbying and campaigning on behalf of our members;
b)it poses a challenge to our current political arrangements;
c)it has the potential to enable political parties to skew the political process in their favour.
Conference welcomes the turnout in the last APF (Labour Link) National committee elections which was relatively high in comparison with recent National Executive and Service Group Elections, conference recognises the importance the use of all APF payer ballots on a regional basis for electing the APF committee.
Conference recognises that the union has adopted a devolution protocol, and that this should be recognised in political fund arrangements.
Acknowledging these developments, Conference therefore instructs the National Executive Council to:
1)carry out a full review of the political fund arrangements involving the affiliated political fund, general political fund, services groups, self organised groups, regions and branches to scrutinise and reform operations and functional processes to ensure the highest levels of transparency, participation and activity and to report to Conference on this;
2)include in the review, regional APF (Labour Link) structures and operation;
3)to continue to campaign to ensure that the voices and opinions of trade unionists are allowed to continue to make a valid and necessary contribution to political debate.
4) also include in the review the set up of the two national political committees and consider expanding the directly elected seats and reducing the indirectly elected seats to the National APF (Labour Link) committee;