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Motion #A02
We welcome the four newly co-opted members to Policy Development Committee (PDC). After a selection process which included a very competitive field of principal authority councillors and experienced policy campaigners, Cllr Julian Dean, Cllr Tony Dyer, Emily Bond and Martin Blake agreed to join the committee to support policy development for the whole party. We thank everyone who put themselves forward and welcome our new members to the team.
PDC now is a much stronger committee, with only 3 elected vacancies due to too few members stepping forward at election time in summer 2021. We are hoping that the recent appointment of an Election Returning Officer will lead to the re-opening of nominations: keep an eye out for how you can also join PDC.
The committee meets on Zoom at least every month – minutes and notification of the meetings are posted on Green Spaces. Members are welcome to come and observe.
Policy Development Committee discussed, identified and agreed three priorities for PDC for the year ahead:
i. Councillors – to work with elected Greens who are putting policies into practice to support the development of pragmatic policies and in areas where our elected Greens can have influence ii. Communication – to prioritise clarity and support for Policy Working Groups and develop the support from the Digital team to improve the policy sections of the website (members and public facing) iii. Strategy – to work with Political Committee and the leadership team to identify the key areas where policy development would be most advantageous for the party.
Policy Development Committee received application forms and background papers from the proposers of 3 motions for accreditation for Spring Conference 2022. The criteria for accreditation is part of the Standing Orders for the Conduct of Conference and involves that full consultation, both within and outwith the party has taken place, that high quality supporting evidence has been provided, that the motion is endorsed by a Policy Working Group or other recognised body within the party, and that the motion is consistent with the Party’s strategic political objectives as advised by relevant bodies within the party.
The process of becoming more strategic in terms of identifying the key areas of policies for development to meet the needs of accreditation and the goals of the party’s Political Strategy continues. A useful session was held at Policy Fest to discuss how and where these needs are, with a particular focus on Green Party Councillors, elected Greens and our spokespeople. A Policy Strategy would help to inform PDC when it comes to decisions regarding accreditation.
PDC accredited all 3 motions, and these are now found in Section C of the agenda. The quality of the background papers this Conference was incredibly high with fully referenced reports, charts and explanations. These have already been shared with some elected Greens and we would like to see them uploaded ! to inform members and spokespeople and other elected Greens ! on the members’ website.
A reminder that accreditation is an indicator that the policy put forward has been put together in a robust, evidence! based manner and will meet the strategic needs of the party. It is not a mark of validation or support by the PDC members – approval and acceptance of the policy must be made by Conference.
Policy Development Committee recommended to SOC several motions for fast tracking at Autumn Conference 2021, and a number of those were successfully fast tracked including enabling motions and some policy motions. Fast tracking ensures that in a packed conference agenda, particularly with all the A Reports at Autumn Conference, important policy motions can be agreed. A reminder that fast tracking is only appropriate for “motions which are not contentious, do not require expenditure in excess of £100, are consistent with already existing party policy and will potentially not get heard due to their position in the agenda.” Ten or more members can vote against the fast tracking of a motion during the A reports.
The policy.greenparty.org.uk website remains the essential file of Green Party of England and Wales policy for public and party members’ perusal and reference. Currently (January 2022) this website is not up to date from the most recent conferences and PDC have been working with the staff team to get to a resolution about updating the site. By the end of 2022 the policy site should be completely redesigned and updated, but before then the staff team will be updating the policies from 2020 and 2021 and passed at this conference. The committee understand the obstacles that this has caused not just for Policy Working Groups and members but for spokespeople and campaigners. As co! ordinator I apologise for all these difficulties experienced. A clear process of updating will also be put in place for the future with those responsible for this task given the technical abilities to do so
PDC are also in discussions to develop the ‘Policy’ section of the members’ website so that it operates more like a dashboard. This would aim to increase participation and enable members to get more actively involved in policy development.
Huge thank you to everyone who made Policy Fest 2022 such a successful and enjoyable week. For the second January in a row, Policy Fest moved to online only (Zoom) and ran from Sunday to Saturday. Over 700 members registered for the event and 40 sessions were scheduled, covering a wide range of policy areas for development. Members were able to attend meetings, listen to talks from our spokespeople and external experts, view presentations and help contribute towards writing and reviewing our party’s policies. Engagement throughout the week was high and response was positive. PDC could look to hosting a further Summer Policy Fest (July?) but shorter in hours as by then we should be enjoying the sunny weather and pleasant evenings.
PDC thank all the Policy Working Groups and party members who took part, the volunteers who gave their time to supporting the sessions, and in particular the Conferences team who assisted to make the entire week run as smoothly as possible. We hope to see you at another Policy Fest soon!
PWGs remain the energy, expertise and driving force behind policy development. Each Policy Chapter in Policies for a Sustainable Society should have an active PWG and PDC are working hard to not only ensure this is the case, but to provide opportunities for PWGs to get together and work across these chapter boundaries on areas which require collaboration. A list of PWGs and their convenors and contact details are to be found on the members’ website. Every Green Party member can join these PWGs and would be most welcome.
This Spring Conference 2022 Agenda includes a proposal to ‘clarify and refine the Policy Process’. Whilst PDC did not agree as a committee to support this motion in its entirety, we agreed that there is a clear need to review the policy process and make it more straightforward for members to engage. PDC are looking to establish a subgroup with a focus on reviewing and improving the policy process which will be open to non-PDC members to take part, will report back to GPEX and GPRC and will look to bring a motion to conference if necessary