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Manifesto Process Guide: Labour

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Manifesto Process Guide: Labour For more information on DeHavilland and how we can help with political monitoring, custom research and consultancy, contact: +44 (0)20 3033 3870 [email protected] www.dehavilland.co.uk INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................................ 3 KEY BODIES INVOLVED .............................................................................................................................. 3 AGENDA 2015 ................................................................................................................................................ 5 2014-2015 TIMETABLE ............................................................................................................................. 6 POLICY REVIEW ............................................................................................................................................ 7 PEOPLE ......................................................................................................................................................... 10 AFTERWORD .............................................................................................................................................. 13 DeHavilland Information Services Ltd 2015 www.dehavilland.co.uk 2 The Labour Party has made a commitment to making its policy development process as accessible and transparent as possible. Entitled ‘Agenda 2015’, the Policy Review process aims to be a “comprehensive process of discussion looking at every aspect of Labour’s policy in order to support the development of [a] manifesto for 2015”. Agenda 2015 runs through a four year cycle. It is a continuous revision process of proposals and amendments made by a range of stakeholders, meant to reflect Labour leader Ed Miliband’s attempt to open up his party’s policy development to the wider public. The National Executive Committee is the governing body of the Labour Party. It oversees the overall direction of the party and the policy-making process. All members of the National Executive Committee (NEC) are members of the National Policy Forum (NPF). Membership of the NEC is structured so as to represent all key stakeholders in the party. The National Policy Forum aims to achieve consensus on policy issues within the party. Membership includes representatives of Constituency Labour Parties (CLPs), councillors, affiliated trade unions and socialist societies, the Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP), the European Parliamentary Labour Party (EPLP) and other stakeholders in the party. The Joint Policy Committee is a joint committee encompassing members of the NEC, Opposition and the NPF. It is tasked with providing “strategic oversight of policy development in the party”. The Annual Conference decides on the policy framework and party rules. It also considers the policy papers prepared by the policy commissions following consultations with CLPs Eight Policy Commissions consider proposals put forward by stakeholders, including submissions made through the Your Britain website, and draft Challenge Papers and Policy Documents. Members are drawn from the NPF, the Shadow Cabinet, the NEC, affiliates (such as trade unions), elected politicians, and the ordinary membership of the Labour Party. DeHavilland Information Services Ltd 2015 www.dehavilland.co.uk 3 DeHavilland Information Services Ltd 2015 www.dehavilland.co.uk 4 Please note that what follows is an informal summary of the manifesto development process. Stakeholders are asked to submit proposals on the key issues that should be addressed in the manifesto. These are agreed upon by the Joint Policy Committee and constitute the basis for the Challenge Papers subsequently released by the Policy Commissions. Stakeholders are encouraged to submit responses to the Challenge Papers. Draft policy documents are released daily with comment opportunities for stakeholders. The National Policy Forum, the Joint Policy Committee and Policy Commissions agree on the draft documents. Annual Conference 2013 votes on the submitted proposals. Policy Commissions draft final policy documents and open up a consultation process that includes elected representatives, CLPs, affiliated organisations and candidates. Each CLP can submit up to ten amendments in total. These are considered by the National Policy Forum members. The Annual Conference 2014 then votes on the final Policy Programme. Manifesto is formally adopted during Clause V meeting in April 2015. DeHavilland Information Services Ltd 2015 www.dehavilland.co.uk 5 DeHavilland Information Services Ltd 2015 www.dehavilland.co.uk 6 Changing Britain Together Summary: The review is aimed at gathering views on the party’s direction of travel and some of the policies a Labour government would implement. Key people: Labour leader Ed Miliband An End to Cold Homes – Labour’s energy efficiency green paper Summary: The review is aimed at setting out in more detail the nature of Labour’s plans for tackling “the scandal of cold homes” and at providing an opportunity for interested partieis to engage in the development of the proposals. Key people: Shadow Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change Caroline Flint Part 2 of the Lobbying Act Summary: The review is aimed at identifying of the best approach to regulation, which balances the desire for transparency and a framework that restricts “big money” in elections, whilst allowing charities and campaigners to flourish. Key people: Shadow International Development Spokesperson and Shadow Work and Pensions Spokesperson Baroness Sherlock; Shadow Political Reform and Constitutional Reform Minister Stephen Twigg. More Sport for All Summary: The consultation explores how everyone, from children through to the elderly, can be supported to participate in sport and physical activity. Key people: Deputy Labour leader Harriet Harman; Shadow Sports Minister Clive Efford. Exploitation law – fit for practice? Summary: The review seeks views on a number of proposals aimed at tackling the exploitation of migrants in work. Key people: Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper; Shadow Business Secretary Chuka Umunna DeHavilland Information Services Ltd 2015 www.dehavilland.co.uk 7 Victims’ Taskforce Summary: The Taskforce will lead on Labour’s work to establish a victims’ law and advise on the way victims and witnesses are treated by the criminal justice system. Key people: Baroness Doreen Lawrence Peter Neyroud, former police officer, currently Resident Scholar at the Jerry Lee Centre for Experimental Criminology, University of Cambridge Sir Keir Starmer, QC, barrister, former Director of Public Prosecutions and head of the Crown Prosecution Service; former Human Rights Advisor to the Northern Ireland Policing Board and the Association of Chief Police Officer Lyons Housing Review Summary: An independent review into what changes in planning and housing policies and practices are needed to address the UK’s housing crisis. Key people: The Lyons Commission (supported by the Fabian Society) Sir Michael Lyons Tom Bloxham, Chairman and Co-Founder, Urban Splash Mark Clare, Group Chief Executive, Barratt Developments Plc. Julia Evans, National Federation of Builders. Kate Henderson, Chief Executive, Town and Country Planning Association. Bill Hughes, Legal and General Grainia Long, Chief Executive, Chartered Institute of Housing Simon Marsh, Head of Planning Policy, RSPB David Orr, Chief Executive, National Housing Federation Richard Parker, Partner and Head of Housing, PwC Malcolm Sharp, Immediate Past President, Planning Officers’ Society Ed Turner, Deputy Leader, Oxford City Council Professor Cecilia Wong, Professor of Spatial Planning, University of Manchester Energy Green Paper Summary: The consultation sets out Labour’s plans for reform of the energy market in more detail and provides an opportunity for interested parties to engage in the development of these proposals. Key people: Labour leader Ed Miliband; Shadow Energy Secretary Caroline Flint. Realising One Nation: Developing a new race equality strategy Summary: The review is aimed at kick-starting the process of developing a new race equality strategy to help tackle the barriers that still exist for black and ethnic minority people in the economy, society and politics. DeHavilland Information Services Ltd 2015 www.dehavilland.co.uk 8 Key people: Shadow Minister for Women and Equalities Gloria de Piero MP Zero-Based Review Summary: The review, which looks at public spending, is aimed at providing “a root and branch review of every pound Government spends from the bottom up.” Labour has said that it will “ruthlessly prioritise public spending and deliver service reform and improvements rather than just salami slicing budgets and watching services deteriorate.” Key people: The Review Panel Alexis Cleveland CB, former Director General for Transformational Government at the Cabinet Office, advising on “making best use of information and communication technology’’ Prof Dermot Cahill, Chair of the Institute for Competition and Procurement Studies, advising on “effective public sector procurement” Margret Exley CBE, former HM Treasury board member and expert in change management advising on “streamlining, simplification, collaboration and integration” Baroness Jeannie Drake CBE, former member of the Turner Commission on Pensions and former President of the TUC on “the use of consultants and temporary staff, and wider issues in workforce deployment and capability”
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