FCC report pre-Conference

On Saturday, 19 September the Federal Conference Committee met to review the amendments, late motions, emergency motions, topical issues, questions to reports and appeals for next weekend’s Autumn Conference.

As you will be aware, this is the first time that are holding our Conference completely online. The Federal Conference Committee would like to thank the Conference and wider HQ team for all of the hard work in bringing our Conference online. Throughout a really difficult period we have all worked together to offer a fully online Conference. You can see the introduction video from Geoff Payne, FCC Chair, and Hannah, from HQ HERE

The video will show you all the features of the online conference, including the auditorium, visiting, fringe sessions, training, the exhibition and the chat functionality.

We would also like to thank our fantastic members for the patience and understanding whilst we are all embarking on a new experience with an online conference. The online platform is being delivered by dedicated supplier Hopin.

You can still register for Conference HERE and submit speakers’ cards HERE . Please note that you will need to submit speakers’ cards earlier than usual (16:00 he day before the agenda item). This because our production partners will need to get in touch with you earlier so that they can ensure that the internet signal is good and that you are prepared for your speech. We will be selecting more speakers than we will schedule, so that we have a reserve list

You can submit amendments to the two late motions (on Europe and COVID) HERE . Please note that voting for the emergency motion will be done via Mi-Voice and will close on Friday at 19:00.

I have included below the list of items discussed at Saturday’s meeting of the FCC; you will see the amendments, late motions, emergency motions, questions submitted to committees and the appeals.

Please note that the summary of the topic is my own (i.e. I have summarised the amendment), I have tried to summarise the amendment as close as possible to what was submitted.

Regarding the amendments they have either been ‘Accepted’ for debate, not selected, or ‘drafted’, this means that the amendment has been added into the text of the motion and therefore will not be debated and voted on separately.

With regards to the emergency motions, these need to relate to something that has happened after the deadline for motions submission, and thus are decided by the Federal Conference Committee if they are or are not valid.

With regards to the questions, we review that they are being submitted to the correct Committee.

There were four appeals against non-selection of motions and the four appeals were not upheld.

I hope that the above (and of course below) is of use and interest. I will try and answer any questions that you do have and you can also contact me via email: [email protected]

	AMENDMENT SELECTIONS:		SELECTED?
	Motion and amendments to motion	Summary of the topic of the amendment
F5	Mental Health Support for Health and Care Staff
A	Amend line 40 and add at line 43	Amend COVID support hotline and promotional programme for support	DRAFTED
B	Amend title, lines 1-9, conference notes (a) and (e) and amend lines 40-57	Extend motion to cover frontline public service professionals and a more liberal fast track scheme	NOT SELECTED

F7	Nature of Public Debate During COVID-19
A	New Conference calls for (10)	Introduce stricter regulation for social media companies	NOT SELECTED
B	New conference however notes after line 17	Regarding misleading information from central government and praising LibDem Councils and Cllrs.	NOT SELECTED
C	New Conference believes (g) and delete Conference calls for (5) and replace with new	Regarding government engagement with public and how to make it more equal. How to include marginalised voices. Amendment to the citizens juries.	ACCEPTED

D	New Conference also notes (viii), new Conference believes (g) and New Conference calls for (10)	Amendment regarding public tendering for contracts during COVID period	NOT SELECTED

F8	Universal Basic Income
A	Delete and replace in line 54, delete line 55, delete lines 56-64, amend line 66, delete lines 67-69	Amendment to motion rom campaigning for UBI to championing the concept, changes reference to FPC from working on implementation to interim proposals to Conference. Removal of reference to accessible income support mechanisms.	NOT SELECTED
B	Replace lines 31-37 and add new Conference further notes after line 52	Amends the lines 31-37 with removal of “hastily and inadequately”; amends the wording of that section as well. New Conference further notes covers that more than 1mn people applied for the current system of UC, which was temporarily increased but inadequate to keep people out of poverty	NOT SELECTED
C	New Conference furthermore believes (iii) and calls for (4)	1) reference to Social Metrics Commission and Joseph Rowntree Foundation calculate income needs by household type. 2) Medium term aspiration for UBI and working-age benefits combined to equal the best guidance for sufficient income needs	NOT SELECTED
D	Amend line 39 and delete word ‘major’ in line 41	Specify living cost support for entrepreneurs to first weeks of business. Removal of word major.	NOT SELECTED
E	New Conference notes c), delete and replace lines 56-57, new Conference therefore calls for 3	Adds in environmental focus and ‘polluter pays’ approaches.	WITHDRAWN

F11	Creation of a Federal United Kingdom
A	New Conference notes (D), new Conference calls for (2.e) and (6)	Extends the motion to cover English devolution	NOT SELECTED
B	Creates new Conference notes E and Conference calls for e	Against central government power grabs and status of local government to be defined	NOT SELECTED

F18	Racial Justice Cannot Wait
A	Add new Conference calls for 3.d	Introduction STV for all elections with priority on local government noting that way to secure minority representation	NOT SELECTED
B	Add new paragraph “Conference recognises” after line 50 and create new Conference Calls for 2.e	Calls for expansion of restorative justice, community mediation and social work teams to rebuild trust, access to justice and reduce over-reliance on police	NOT SELECTED
C	Add to end of Conference notes 1.iv, add new conference resolves 2.d and 2.e	Regarding black people having force used against them and detention under Mental Health Act and regarding use of body worn cameras	ACCEPTED
D	New conference notes (x) and include new conference results 1.g, 1.h, 1.i.	Regarding ONS Categories and expanding to cover differences and new ethnic groups in UK. Reform how mixed heritage people are counted	ACCEPTED

F19	Save the BBC
A	Amend title, new Conference notes (ii) and renumber, new (vi), new Conference believes (b) and renumber, new f, new Conference calls for 2 and renumber	Extends motion to include Channel 4 as well	NOT SELECTED

F21	Green Recovery from the COVID-19 Pandemic
A	Add new Conference notes (D), amend line 19 of conference believes (iii) and amend line 37, Conference Calls for 2.	Adds in reference to protective environment, adaptability of businesses and encouraging innovation, plus audit of green skills required	DRAFTED
B	Add new Conference notes (B) and renumber, Delete Conference believes (iii) and replace, New Conference calls for 1&2 and renumber, and amend current Conference calls for (2)	Extends parts of the motion t o include the impact that COVID has had on quality of life and calls for assessment based on societal ‘wellbeing’	NOT SELECTED
C	New Conference notes (B), new Conference believes (iv), new Conference calls for (10)	Extends the motion calling for the creation of a new low-carbon economy and that we need a carbon tax, with a carbon tax dividend paid to make the carbon tax progressive	NOT SELECTED
D	New Conference notes B, New Conference believes iv, new Conference call for 10	Regarding that leaving the EU will mean loss of Polluter Pays Principle, and ensures that this remains future legislation in the UK	NOT SELECTED
E	Amendment to conference believes (i), addition to conference believes (ii), and amends Conference reaffirms (a)	Removes a reference to COVID-19 and places emphasis on rapid reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, reword ‘cut emissions’ to ‘cut greenhouse gas emissions’	DRAFTED
F	New Conference Notes (D), New Conference calls for (10)	Adds in references to nature being at the heart of green recovery. Building a Nature Recovery Network to link habitats and increasing access to national parks and green spaces	ACCEPTED

F31	Hong Kong’s Future
A	Add Conference Regrets after line 33, adds new Conference calls or (5)	Adds in reference to disqualification of 12 candidates for election, postponement of elections and use of security law to undermine rights of HK people. Calls on UK government to monitor impact of new security law and use influence	DRAFTED

F32	Supporting Trans and Non-Binary People
A	Separate Vote	Separate Vote request for Conference Notes (A)	NOT SELECTED


	EMERGENCY MOTIONS

	Communities and Local Government
A	Opposing Government Power Grab on Planning		IN ORDER
B	Defending and Advancing Local Democracy		NOT SELECTED

	Crime, Justice and Civil Liberties
A	Defending the Rule of Law		IN ORDER
B	Safe and Legal Routes to Save Lives		IN ORDER
C	Channel Crossings		NOT SELECTED

	Economy and Jobs
A	Supporting Businesses, workers and self-employed in the COVID-19 pandemic		IN ORDER
B	Securing Women’s Jobs in the COVID-19 pandemic		NOT SELECTED
C	An End to Exclusions in the Government’s COVID-19 financial support		NOT SELECTED

	Education and Families
A	The Exam Fiasco of August 2020 and the case for assessment reform		IN ORDER

	International and Defence
A	Persecution of the Uyghurs		IN ORDER
B	Government’s Abolition of DfID and cuts in development spending		IN ORDER

	Political and Constitutional Reform
A	Russia Report		IN ORDER

	Transport
A	Stop HS2		NOT IN ORDER

	LATE MOTIONS

	COVID -19
A	UK Government’s Response to COVID-19 pandemic		ACCEPTED

	Europe
A	The UK and Europe		ACCEPTED
B	Europe		NOT SELECTED
C	Voting Rights of Citizens living in the EU		NOT SELECTED
	TOPICAL: ISSUES
A	Re-joining the EU		NO SLOT
B	The Merits of an Allergy Act		NO SLOT
C	CANZUK Free Trade Area		NO SLOT
D	Two leaders		NO SLOT
	QUESTIONS TO REPORTS

	Federal Conference Committee
Q1	The agenda states ‘The chair will select which questions will be asked’. Will questions which are not asked ‘live’ be answered in writing and those responses published in the post-conference report?		IN ORDER
Q2	Why is there no report from the Federal Appeals Panel. What steps does FCC have in place to ensure reports are submitted on time.		IN ORDER

	Federal Board
Q1	What has happened to the Legacy Society? When I joined I had email 7th August 2019 informing someone would be in touch, but nothing since.		IN ORDER
Q2	My usual question: what progress has been made towards making LGBT+LDs a recruiting body as we were promised several years ago we would be made?		IN ORDER
Q3	Will the Federal Board investigate whether involvement with and support for groups that target trans people such as Transgender Trend, the LGB Alliance and Women’s Place UK is consistent with the values of the Liberal Democrats and commit to reporting back at a future conference.		IN ORDER
Q4	Would we allow pernicious trolls a column in our FOCUS leaflets? Once volunteers were used to control the National Facebook site, why did this stop?		IN ORDER
Q5	Once volunteers were used to administer the national Facebook site, why did this stop?		IN ORDER

	Federal Appeals Panel
Q1	What steps have the FAP adopted to ensure they act in an impartial and fair way when an appeal is raised involving actions of the Chair or another member of the FAP.		IN ORDER
Q2	A rearrangment of the party website means it is no longer easy to find reports from previous conferences, including FAP reports. Will the Chair of FAP commit to making the following easily accessible and available on the members only section of the website: 1) FAP membership 2) Rules of procedure that have been adopted by the FAP 3) The process for raising an appeal 4) Previous rulings of the panel and rulings of the chair regarding the interpretation of the constitution		IN ORDER
Q3	No report from the FAP was submitted with the other committee reports or in time for the deadline for questions. Will the Chair of the FAP give conference an explanation and apologise for this failure.		IN ORDER
	APPEALS
A	Progressive Carbon Tax including aviation to reduce both CO2 and poverty		Appeal not upheld
B	Beveridge 2.0		Appeal not upheld
C	Social Contract Vision and Purpose		Appeal not upheld
D	The European Union		Appeal not upheld

* Nick Da Costa is Chair of the Federal Conference Committee

2 Comments

David Blake 23rd Sep '20 - 7:09pm

Why was the HS2 motion not in order?
Nick da Costa 24th Sep '20 - 9:58am

@David Blake – The HS2 was not in order as it was not an emergency motion (as per the Standing Orders) as in, no significant changes had happened since the motions deadline. Therefore was ruled out of order.