Grassroots Alliance
Encyclopedia
The centre-left Grassroots Alliance is a group of elected members on the British Labour Party
National Executive Committee
, founded in 1998. They represent members from a broad spectrum of the Labour membership, ranging from centrists to left wingers. The elected members are a minority in a Committee that is otherwise dominated by appointed representatives of trades unions, the Parliamentary Labour Party
and others. The Committee has recently (March 2006) become prominent again as the body responsible for demanding that party fund-raising
no longer be managed outside the control of the Party executive after a scandal over loans to the Party
about which, it would seem, the Party's Treasurer
had insufficient knowledge.
The Alliance's founding groups were originally Labour Reform, a centrist democratic group within the Party, and the Campaign for Labour Party Democracy, the left wing democratic grouping, who subsequently brought in other more Left groupings from within the Labour Party. Private talks with trades union representatives to build a broader base had failed on union demands and this initiated the inclusion of a much broader Left group from the grassroots
, including Labour Left Briefing and the Editor of Tribune
, Mark Seddon
. Successful efforts were also made to include the Scottish Left.
The first Co-ordinator [one term only] was Tim Pendry who was Deputy Chair of Labour Reform and the Alliance originally restricted itself to issues of party democracy, resisting attempts to put in place a left policy platform in order to be inclusive of constituency feeling from the centre ground.
The first election resulted in four of the six available constituency seats going to the Alliance and was notable for getting the editorial backing of the Guardian
. The Alliance has moved to the Left since the initial Election but the slate continues to support the mainstream Labour Reform candidate, Ann Black
, who has been committed from the beginning to reporting back to ordinary members on the business of the National Executive Committee.
Despite the popularity of Ann Black, Labour Reform itself was weakened by the refusal of the Party administration and leadership to concede any ground on democracy but it has stayed loyal to the original Alliance, giving much needed centre-ground support for what has become an essentially left-wing movement within the Party.
Since its inception, the Alliance has tended to speak for around half, sometimes more, of the Party membership with a loose group of candidates supported by the Party leadership speaking for the other half. The Partnership in Power "reforms" of 1995/6, part of the "modernisation" process introduced by Tony Blair
, have severely limited the ability of ordinary members to influence policy-making so that the elections to the NEC are one of the few barometers of sentiment left about a membership which is in decline.
and individual members in the National Policy Forum
; to maintain the power of the party conference; to resist privatisation in the NHS
; to nationalise
the railways and to increase powers for local government
.
contingent on the committee, the Grassroots Alliance stood six candidates to fill the six spaces allocated to CLPs.
The candidates must be nominated by at least three Constituency Labour Parties, including their own. However, all candidates will try to get more nominations to improve their chances across the nation. In this division of the NEC elections, each party member has the ability to vote.
In 2006 the six candidates were Mohammed Azam, Ann Black
, Gaye Johnston, Christine Shawcroft, Pete Willsman and Walter Wolfgang
. Christine Shawcroft was at the time vice-chair of the Labour Representation Committee
(LRC).
The selection of Wolfgang, following his high-profile ejection from Labour Party Conference in 2005, may be a sign of a left-wing backlash against the New Labour leadership of the party. These candidates are also supported and endorsed by the Labour Representation Committee, the Socialist Campaign group of Labour MPs
, Save the Labour Party, the Labour Black Representation Committee and the Scottish Campaign for Socialism
.
It was announced on August 3 that four members of the Grassroots Alliance were elected to the National Executive Committee
. These were Christine Shawcroft, Walter Wolfgang
, Ann Black
and Peter Willsman. This means that Grassroots Alliance controls 4 out of 6 of the CLP division places on the NEC.
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
National Executive Committee
National Executive Committee
The National Executive Committee or NEC is the chief administrative body of the UK Labour Party. Its composition has changed over the years, and includes representatives of affiliated trade unions, the Parliamentary Labour Party and European Parliamentary Labour Party, Constituency Labour Parties,...
, founded in 1998. They represent members from a broad spectrum of the Labour membership, ranging from centrists to left wingers. The elected members are a minority in a Committee that is otherwise dominated by appointed representatives of trades unions, the Parliamentary Labour Party
Parliamentary Labour Party
In UK politics, the Parliamentary Labour Party is the parliamentary party of the Labour Party in Parliament: Labour MPs as a collective body....
and others. The Committee has recently (March 2006) become prominent again as the body responsible for demanding that party fund-raising
Campaign finance
Campaign finance refers to all funds that are raised and spent in order to promote candidates, parties or policies in some sort of electoral contest. In modern democracies such funds are not necessarily devoted to election campaigns. Issue campaigns in referendums, party activities and party...
no longer be managed outside the control of the Party executive after a scandal over loans to the Party
Cash for Peerages
Cash for Honours is the name given by some in the media to a political scandal in the United Kingdom in 2006 and 2007 concerning the connection between political donations and the award of life peerages...
about which, it would seem, the Party's Treasurer
Treasurer of the Labour Party
The Treasurer of the Labour Party is a position on the National Executive Committee of the British Labour Party.Although a post with little power, in the past, it was often hotly contested by people who later became big names in British politics: Arthur Greenwood beat Herbert Morrison in 1943, Hugh...
had insufficient knowledge.
The Alliance's founding groups were originally Labour Reform, a centrist democratic group within the Party, and the Campaign for Labour Party Democracy, the left wing democratic grouping, who subsequently brought in other more Left groupings from within the Labour Party. Private talks with trades union representatives to build a broader base had failed on union demands and this initiated the inclusion of a much broader Left group from the grassroots
Grassroots
A grassroots movement is one driven by the politics of a community. The term implies that the creation of the movement and the group supporting it are natural and spontaneous, highlighting the differences between this and a movement that is orchestrated by traditional power structures...
, including Labour Left Briefing and the Editor of Tribune
Tribune (magazine)
Tribune is a democratic socialist weekly, founded in 1937 published in London. It is independent but supports the Labour Party from the left...
, Mark Seddon
Mark Seddon
-Education:Seddon was educated at Dauntsey's School, an independent school , in the village of West Lavingdon in Wiltshire.-Life and career:...
. Successful efforts were also made to include the Scottish Left.
The first Co-ordinator [one term only] was Tim Pendry who was Deputy Chair of Labour Reform and the Alliance originally restricted itself to issues of party democracy, resisting attempts to put in place a left policy platform in order to be inclusive of constituency feeling from the centre ground.
The first election resulted in four of the six available constituency seats going to the Alliance and was notable for getting the editorial backing of the Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
. The Alliance has moved to the Left since the initial Election but the slate continues to support the mainstream Labour Reform candidate, Ann Black
Ann Black
Ann Black is a member of the British Labour Party's National Executive Committee , Chair of the Labour Party from September 2009, and is part of the Grassroots Alliance group of NEC members....
, who has been committed from the beginning to reporting back to ordinary members on the business of the National Executive Committee.
Despite the popularity of Ann Black, Labour Reform itself was weakened by the refusal of the Party administration and leadership to concede any ground on democracy but it has stayed loyal to the original Alliance, giving much needed centre-ground support for what has become an essentially left-wing movement within the Party.
Since its inception, the Alliance has tended to speak for around half, sometimes more, of the Party membership with a loose group of candidates supported by the Party leadership speaking for the other half. The Partnership in Power "reforms" of 1995/6, part of the "modernisation" process introduced by Tony Blair
Tony Blair
Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
, have severely limited the ability of ordinary members to influence policy-making so that the elections to the NEC are one of the few barometers of sentiment left about a membership which is in decline.
Policy
The current policy of the Grassroots Alliance is broadly left-wing. They want greater powers for Constituency Labour PartiesConstituency Labour Party
A Constituency Labour Party is an organisation of members of the British Labour Party who live in a particular UK parliamentary constituency in England, Scotland and Wales. The Labour Party in Northern Ireland has, since February 2009, been organised as a province-wide Constituency Labour Party...
and individual members in the National Policy Forum
National Policy Forum
The National Policy Forum of the British Labour Party is part of the policy-making system of the Party, set up by Leader Tony Blair as part of the Partnership in Power process....
; to maintain the power of the party conference; to resist privatisation in the NHS
National Health Service
The National Health Service is the shared name of three of the four publicly funded healthcare systems in the United Kingdom. They provide a comprehensive range of health services, the vast majority of which are free at the point of use to residents of the United Kingdom...
; to nationalise
Nationalization
Nationalisation, also spelled nationalization, is the process of taking an industry or assets into government ownership by a national government or state. Nationalization usually refers to private assets, but may also mean assets owned by lower levels of government, such as municipalities, being...
the railways and to increase powers for local government
Local government
Local government refers collectively to administrative authorities over areas that are smaller than a state.The term is used to contrast with offices at nation-state level, which are referred to as the central government, national government, or federal government...
.
NEC elections
At the 2006 NEC elections for the Constituency Labour PartiesConstituency Labour Party
A Constituency Labour Party is an organisation of members of the British Labour Party who live in a particular UK parliamentary constituency in England, Scotland and Wales. The Labour Party in Northern Ireland has, since February 2009, been organised as a province-wide Constituency Labour Party...
contingent on the committee, the Grassroots Alliance stood six candidates to fill the six spaces allocated to CLPs.
The candidates must be nominated by at least three Constituency Labour Parties, including their own. However, all candidates will try to get more nominations to improve their chances across the nation. In this division of the NEC elections, each party member has the ability to vote.
In 2006 the six candidates were Mohammed Azam, Ann Black
Ann Black
Ann Black is a member of the British Labour Party's National Executive Committee , Chair of the Labour Party from September 2009, and is part of the Grassroots Alliance group of NEC members....
, Gaye Johnston, Christine Shawcroft, Pete Willsman and Walter Wolfgang
Walter Wolfgang
Walter Jakob Wolfgang is a German-born British socialist and peace activist.He is currently Vice President and Vice Chair of Labourof the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament and a supporter of the Stop the War Coalition...
. Christine Shawcroft was at the time vice-chair of the Labour Representation Committee
Labour Representation Committee (2004)
The Labour Representation Committee is a British socialist pressure group within the Labour Party and wider labour movement. It is often seen as representing the most left wing members of the Labour Party.-Overview:...
(LRC).
The selection of Wolfgang, following his high-profile ejection from Labour Party Conference in 2005, may be a sign of a left-wing backlash against the New Labour leadership of the party. These candidates are also supported and endorsed by the Labour Representation Committee, the Socialist Campaign group of Labour MPs
Socialist Campaign Group
The Socialist Campaign Group is a left-wing democratic socialist grouping of Labour Party Members of Parliament in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom. It was formed in December 1982 as an alternative Parliamentary left-wing group to the Tribune Group...
, Save the Labour Party, the Labour Black Representation Committee and the Scottish Campaign for Socialism
Scottish Labour Party Campaign for Socialism
The Campaign for Socialism is a left wing organisation within the Scottish Labour Party. It was formed in the aftermath of the vote within the Labour Party to remove Clause IV from the party's constitution...
.
It was announced on August 3 that four members of the Grassroots Alliance were elected to the National Executive Committee
National Executive Committee
The National Executive Committee or NEC is the chief administrative body of the UK Labour Party. Its composition has changed over the years, and includes representatives of affiliated trade unions, the Parliamentary Labour Party and European Parliamentary Labour Party, Constituency Labour Parties,...
. These were Christine Shawcroft, Walter Wolfgang
Walter Wolfgang
Walter Jakob Wolfgang is a German-born British socialist and peace activist.He is currently Vice President and Vice Chair of Labourof the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament and a supporter of the Stop the War Coalition...
, Ann Black
Ann Black
Ann Black is a member of the British Labour Party's National Executive Committee , Chair of the Labour Party from September 2009, and is part of the Grassroots Alliance group of NEC members....
and Peter Willsman. This means that Grassroots Alliance controls 4 out of 6 of the CLP division places on the NEC.