Motion #12
Across the Party there is inconsistent understanding and application of the phrase ‘Conflict of Interest’. Party governance needs to be of the highest standard.
1 Conflict of Interest
1a As day-to-day direction of the Party is the remit of Green Party Executive (GPEx) (Constitution 7.i), Conference instructs that body, or a committee drawn up by that body (as per Constitution 7.x), to research and approve a definition of ‘conflict of interest’. Once agreed, this definition will be distributed to all national, regional and local governance bodies, plus the committees of Special Interest Groups (SPIGs), to be incorporated into their Standing Orders or Constitutions. It will also be published on each Green Space for Party governance bodies and SPIGs.
1b Conference instructs GPEx (or a committee drawn up by that body) to devise a mechanism through which members can raise issues of non-compliance, and to identify or create an appropriate body for investigating any such claims, along with a guide to appropriate sanctions for breaching the requirement to declare any conflict of interest. Details of this mechanism and guide shall be sent out alongside the new definition, both of which shall also be posted in the Green Spaces of all Party governance bodies and SPIGs.
1c Conference instructs GPEx (or a committee drawn up by that body) to provide training to help national, regional, local and SPIG committees to understand how to implement this approach within their meetings. This may be in the form of a handbook, a recorded session available online in the members Green Spaces, or through live training offered at least twice a year after national elections and conference elections.
2 Best Practice Governance
The following clauses refer to governance in these national bodies; GPEx, Green Party Regional Council (GPRC), Standing Orders Committee (SOC) and Disciplinary Committee (DC).
2a Conference instructs GPEx to form a committee to examine both the Nolan Principles and guidance on good governance offered to Local Authorities in England and Wales and, within 12 months, produce a Guide to Good Party Governance for adoption by the named national governance bodies.
2b Conference instructs that committee to devise a mechanism through which members can raise issues of non-compliance, and to identify or create an appropriate body for investigating any such claims, along with a guide to appropriate sanctions for breaching the good governance guidelines. Details of this mechanism and guide shall be sent out alongside the new guide, both of which shall also be posted in the Green Spaces of all Party national governance bodies named above. This may be the same body mentioned in paragraph 1b above.
2c Conference instructs the newly formed compliance body to monitor whether national governance bodies are in compliance with their own standing orders with regards to notice of meetings, openness to observers, clear methods for contacting said committees and publication of minutes. Breach of their own standing orders will be considered to inherently breach good governance practice, and be sanctioned using the authority granted in the paragraph above.
Last updated on 2024-11-02 at 12:44