Young Labour and Labour Students must become more democratic organisations and our youth representatives must be accountable to the young members who vote for them. How will I make Young Labour more democratic? 1 - Introduce OMOV (one member one vote) and Online Voting for all regional and national elections 2 - Crowd sourcing of questions for me to put to the leadership on your behalf 3 - Hold a live web stream after NEC meetings to answer your questions 4 - Regular meetings with my counterpart at unions so I can put young trade unionists views back at the centre of Young Labour If elected NEC Youth Rep I will be ensure all youth committees, excluding liberation positions, nationally and regionally are elected by an online OMOV (one member, one vote) ballot. Introducing online voting will make our structures much more accessible and reduce the cost of participating. No young members should be locked out of democracy in our party simply because they can’t afford an expensive weekend away. It’s outrageous that at a time when the Labour movement is bigger than ever before, democracy is still only available to a tiny minority of members and an even tinier proportion who can afford the cost of entry. As NEC youth rep I’d take these views to the committee that’s been tasked with conducting the review into Youth Structures and demand they do more. The constant stalling and delaying should not be tolerated. We are a national political party with numerous resources and brilliant minds; this is a problem which must be solved immediately. But introducing one member one vote is not enough to change the culture of elitism that has developed in Young Labour and Labour Students. Every NEC meeting I attend I will crowd source questions to put to the leadership of the party on your behalf and make myself as open as possible by providing a live web stream after each meeting where you can ask me questions about decisions I have taken on the NEC. Jeremy has changed the nature of PMQs by opening it up to the people we represent and I want to do the same for the NEC. As well as that I’ll work with the Young Labour, Labour Students, and Young trade union groups to arrange regional events where you can feed back to me your priorities so that I can take this to the NEC and truly be your voice. The views of young trade unionists need to be put back at the centre of our movement, to do this I will meet with the NEC youth reps at each of our unions before NEC meetings to ensure the views of our young workers are taken into account. The NEC is too closed a body, many young members are unsure what the NEC does and what decisions are made each week. I want this to change. I want to make clear the process and structures so that young members can hold the entire NEC to account. I will produce a guide to the NEC with jargon busters and a who’s who so who represents you is clear. I want to be the NEC youth rep that listens to members, in my NEC campaign I have conducted surveys to take into account views of young members when building my manifesto. I got over 100 replies which shows young members really want to have their say, if elected I want to continue this work and create surveys for what young members want to see from our NEC and from the party. We must move Young Labour into the future and ensure we are becoming a more democratic movement. With thousands of new members joining the Labour Party since the leadership election I want to ensure all young members get a say in who their representatives are with one member one vote and are able to hold their representatives accountable with online surveys, web live streams and regular updates on decisions being made. We are a stronger movement when we are open and democratic and when member’s views lead the direction of the party. I want to be your NEC youth rep, to fight for young Labour and Labour students to get the democratic structures that they deserve once and for all. We need to start building a movement, not a machine; a Labour party where your income doesn’t determine how far you go. A more democratic and accountable Young Labour is the first step to do just that.
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AuthorJasmin Beckett Archives
June 2017
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