Why are Liberals, Liberal Democrats, Greens, Socialists, Plaid Cymru, and non-party supporters funding the Labour Party?
“In 2008, an overall financial contribution of £646,000 (2007: £646,103) was made to The Co operative Party”. The Co-operative Group website.
Every non-Labour supporter should read this.
My friend Keith Turner told me a couple of years ago that he didn’t bank with the Co-operative Bank because they funded the Co-operative Party. I had seen nothing about this and thought it unlikely given that our party have had an affinity deal with the Co-operative Bank for years.
I was upping my holdings in the Bank at the time, in light of their slightly more ethical policy than the big banks. As an account holder, a supermarket customer and as a member of the Co-operative I checked all their websites and found nothing suggesting any link with the Co-operative Party.
At a Merseyside Members’ meeting in May I was disappointed to find that various members of the committees were members of the Co-operative Party executive. That of course could be their personal political choice. I was angry to find that the Co-operative Group is funding the Co-operative Party.
The Co-operative Party IS the Labour Party. Co-operative and Labour MPs ARE Labour MPs, in the same way that Conservative and Unionist MPs ARE Conservative MPs. Worse, Labour in government has done little to support Co-operatives for years and yet Liberals have argued in favour of them throughout — when Keynes and others wrote the Yellow Book, when Liberals influenced Callaghan’s Government in the Lib-Lab pact, and in most of our manifestos since 1987.
Why is a consumer and social movement that says it has ethical principles supporting a party that backed the most right wing, illiberal, intolerant, pro-big business Government that this country has ever seen?
Yes, the Labour Governments of 1997–2010 did some good work, but so do MPs of all parties. I doubt that on any audit of their voting that most ‘Co-operative Party’ MPs would pass the fairly basic Co-operative’s ethical tests.
Let’s take a new MP, Luciana Berger (Liverpool Wavertree): she has no readily discernable background in supporting co-operatives, her official website has one mention of them, she has backed one debate in the House over her first year plus 2 EDMs (apart from her party portfolio work, none about the constituency itself), and her website hides her active support for the Israeli regime that would appal her progressive constituents and most co-operators. How is this value for money? There is no reason on her published CV that the Co-operative Group should pay funds towards her and no value for money demonstrated in them doing so (indirectly).
The Co-op could say that they are no different from the big banks backing the Conservative Party. But they claim to be ethical. The Co-operative Group will not achieve an ethical society funding an establishment, illiberal political party and careerist MPs.
I’m not saying they should fund the Liberal Democrats, or anyone else, but all Co-operative members who want the movement to be non-party political should email the group, raise questions at their local members’ meetings, and get this murky corner of political funding and slush funds for the Labour boys and girls exposed.
* Kiron Reid is a Liberal Democrat in Liverpool and a member of the editorial collective of Liberator magazine.
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So you did find something on their website then?
Personally I find it difficult to believe that anyone interested enough in the Co-operative movement in the UK not just to shop and bank there but to become a member, would not know about this regrettable part of the history of the movement.
Nonetheless it is a democratic movement, and all payments from members funds are approved by a resolution at each general meeting. There have been several attempts in various co-operative societies to get them either not to pay this money, or to fund other parties as well. None have gotten very far, despite the fact that a previous chief executive of the biggest society (Co-op Group) was a Lib Dem supporter and member.
There was a nice little piece at Liberal Vision a while back about Arthur Seldon bemoaning the political linkage with Labour way back in 1949.
But, you know, pace your own experience with your local Co-op MP, and some are just as venal as other MPs that’s for sure, others have done lots of good work for the movement. David Drew, formerly of Stroud, spent much of his time promoting community land trusts for affordable housing, there’s a new one, Huw something, who is currently pushing through changes to housing tenure rules to allow for a separate co-operative housing tenure, and hell, even Balls has been pushing through changes to credit union rules to make it easier for them to get started and operate.
But the bottom line is that you simply have to accept that, from its very foundations, the Co-operative Party is the “political wing of the co-operative movement” in the UK and that, as a democratic body, both the trading parts of the Co-op Group and the [arty itself have endorsed the party’s position time and again with regard to its electoral .inks with Labour. If you want to change that, it will be a long, and probably fruitless battle that will have to be fought at every level of the group, from member’ meetings upwards.
Thanks for this Kiron. I was thinking of writing a post along the same lines. Do you know if that is the overall total or if local coop donations are on top? (Our regional coop also donates.)
I’m surprised that someone who is interested in politics should be unaware of the links between the co-operative movement and the Labour Party. Whilst I think they have more in common with us Liberals, as long as the decision is made democratically then I’m afraid there is nothing wrong with it.
You could argue that tax payers have also funded the Conservative Party, because if a large organisation, whether public or private, chooses to make a donation the finds for that come from profits generated by those who purchase their products or work for them, people who don’t have a say which party their company supports.
“The Co-op could say that they are no different from the big banks backing the Conservative Party. But they claim to be ethical.”
The irony is that I would be surprised if any of the “big banks” gave any funding to the Conservative Party. They certainly get funding from companies in the financial services sector, but in terms of “high street banks” I would assume that the only one that makes political donations is the Co-op Bank – to Labour.
Kiron is absolutely right. It’s about ethics (by which I, particularly, mean openness).
The Co-operative – good with Labour Party donations
I actually blogged about this a while back:
http://thepotterblogger.blogspot.com/2011/10/co-op-partys-big-mistake.html
See this 2009 article on the Co-Operative party for more discussion and detail.
No Neil, Midcounties is a separate business. It gave £61,000 in FY 10/11, as agree at the May 2010 AGM.
On this particular topic I do not know the facts well enough to comment, but I would ask if any political party in office has shown any signs of wanting to encourage cooperative ownership?
Left to market forces cooperatives are very much the exception rather than the rule.
Well the solution is to challenge such things at membership meetings then respect the democratic decision making process, if you don’t like the outcome you can always bank elsewhere. Or you could even a rival Liberal Democrat Co-Operative party?
However, if, as it seems, you intention is simply to deprive the Labour party of a long standing source of funds for partisan political reasons then you might find that you don’t get much support. Far more Labour members use the Co-Op than Lib Dems, simply because the Labour party commands more popular support.
I think that the best way for the Co-Operative Party to exercise the most influence would be to operate on a ‘fusion’ ticket – offering endorsement, funding and their name on the ballot for co-operative candidates, whether they be Labour, Green, Lib Dem, or (*gasp*) Tory. On the other hand, I imagine this might make them persona non grata within the Labour Party…
This is the old tradition of “The Front Organisation”, common across The Authoritarian Left & as familiar to Labour as to The SWP. Its not just The Co-op thats a Front for Labour, its most of The Trades Unions, large parts of The Volountary Sector & big chunks of The Media.
We are never going to see the development of Independent Unions & Co-ops while Labour survives as a major Party, not without Legislation anyway.
Paul Barker writes: “Its not just The Co-op thats a Front for Labour, its most of The Trades Unions, large parts of The Volountary Sector & big chunks of The Media.”
Where is your evidence for the extraordinary claim that large parts of the voluntary sector are a front for Labour? Which parts are you referring to?
As for the “big chunks” of the media, the only media group that has consistently supported Labour is the Mirror Group – considerably out numbered by the newspapers (Sun, Express, Mail etc) that backed the Tories at the last election.
Paul Barker has this right. There might have been a chance of overturning wrt Cooperative movement this while New Labour was in power. But now Labour are in opposition and Lib Dems are tied into the coalition you can forget it.
This post, and George Potter’s before it, raises a important campaigning issue here in Rochdale. It was in 1844 that the Rochdale Pioneers founded what became the Cooperative Movement, and it most certainly irks to think that the Labour movement – which didn’t exist as a political movement in 1844 – has hijacked the movement for its political ends.
2012 will be an important year for the Cooperative Movement with anniversary celebrations. It is time that the exclusive political link was broken, to be replaced by, as George Potter recommended, political support for candidates from any party who support the aims of the Cooperative Movement.
Geoffrey Payne: good comment
As to the original post: all democratic structures ossify if constituent members don’t take enough interest, or if the leadership start adopting command measures and aren’t challenged. That applies to the Co-operative party and to the Lib Dems too – in which connection, the way the coalition agreement was ratified springs to mind.
@Geoffrey Payne: Agree with your comment.
@Main Article: The http://www.party.coop site does state “The Co-operative Party is the political arm of the co-operative movement.”
I asked my financial advisor about this once. He assured me that the Coop Bank was the only part of the cooperative movement not to make political donations to anyone.
Trade union members who vote Liberal or Conservative have been
giving the Labour Party money for years by paying the political levy.
Few opt out.
Trade Union members who vote Liberal or Conservative
have been giving the Labour Party money for years by
paying the political levy.Few opt out.
Thanks Jock. Do you know what sort of numbers turn up to the MidCounties AGM and have any impression of whether Labour whip their members to be there?
I am a member of The Co-operative (as opposed to the Co-operative Party) but to me it’s simply just a form of loyalty card. By being a member I get a bit of cash back each year and I get money-off vouchers occasionally. Given that my nearest supermarket is a Co-op and the only one in the town where I work is also a Co-op, I suppose I’m actually taking money out of them they could have put to political purposes. I shop at plenty of other places though that make political donations, including some who give to the Lib Dems, and so if I started getting too fussy about it I’d never shop anywhere. It should be said that The Co-op also sponsor the ALDC members’ reception each year so we do get some benefit as a party.
My feelings about the Co-op Bank are different as I used to be with them for the same ethical stance as Kiron. However, I left them simply because their customer service was appalling.
“The Co-operative Party Limited.
Registered in England as an Industrial and Provident Society under the Industrial and Provident Societies Act 1965. Registered no. 30027R.”
It is, by this definition, a limited liability, privately owned company, statements to the contrary notwithstanding.
Tim, I don’t know how long ago that was you asked your financial adviser, but I’d be suprised if the same situation obtained today. There was a long time when the Bank (and CIS) were more or less separate co-operatives from the Retail Society and the Wholesale Society, but as part of a shakeup over the past decade they were, I think, merged into the Co-operative Group.
The reason I think that was that I once asked if I could join as a customer of the Bank (in the form of Smile, with whom I have never had any customer service problems) and was initially told no as they were spearate, but then more recently asked and was told I could now.
Neil, I found the figures last night. Not sure what the total membership is but I seem to recall that the number of votes cast in annual elections was something of the order of 30k and the number of all attendees at the various sub-regional AGMs added up was 700 and some. The only time I went (and raised a question about whether they would donate to anyone else to which the answer was “bring a motion and see”) many people there, but by no means most, were Co-op Party members, and they seemed to regard themselves as particularly special 🙂
“Why is a consumer and social movement that says it has ethical principles supporting a party that backed the most right wing, illiberal, intolerant, pro-big business Government that this country has ever seen?”
Actually, that would be the current government. For me, that rather renders the point of this piece utterly blunt. It’s a shame, because it could have been making an important and reasonable point. Instead, as seems common with the Lib Dems since they got into Government, it came over all tribal and partisan instead. Important things get lost when that happens, which I thought the Lib Dems were aware of.
This is a fuss about nothing. When it comes to funding I would have thought
the LD’s are not exactly spotless given one or two past contributions. Politicans
trying to be more virginal than their rivals is kid’s stuff
I think you missed the entire point about the posting. Oh well.
Many thanks to Lib Dem Voice and Stephen Tall as co-editor for publishing this piece. More thanks to all of you who have read and commented on and recommended the piece. Thank you for the interesting and informative debate – including telling me several things that I didn’t know and reminding me of the wealth of good material on Lib Dem Voice and blogs that I could have checked myself. That’s my key point but indulge me replying as a group to some of the specific comments next. I wanted to encourage debate and welcome the constructive spirit here.
Sorry for the delay in picking up points. I was away at Decin on the Czech / German border when the piece was published and without internet access (though if visiting, lots of places do have wifi).
Jock, I searched on the Co-operative Bank website, and on the website for the shopping wing, but I tend to look for information than jump to Google, plus site search engines vary considerably. Once I was looking specifically having seen reference in a meeting then I could find it. http://www.co-operative.coop/corporate/Sustainability09/delivering-value/public-policy/political-donations/
If you were trying to look for the information or reading up without knowing, having to browse through Home > Sustainability > delivering value > public policy > political donations to find it is not very obvious.
I originally joined as a gesture of support and to get points to redeem (like Anders) while supporting the local store in the Anfield area where I was a city councillor, so I didn’t look into the political antecedents.
I don’t doubt, Jock, that many of the MPs do good work, the point is fairness and openness (as Simon Shaw says). After Mrs. Thatcher I don’t think any union member who did not want to pay the levy would do so simply by accident (though, Manfarang, I may be wrong).
Sara Scarlett’s Liberal Vision post is interesting (7 Jan 2010), thanks for that. Also thanks to George Potter for his posts and Dave Page for highlighting Sara’s 11 Oct 2009 Lib Dem Voice one. George, thanks for the link to both pieces.
Liberal Neil, and Jock, good Q and A. My figure was from the Group’s Sustainability Report and there is a 2010 figure out there now. Our last Merseyside member’s meeting did have a tabled report on the activities of the Co-operative Party (and the Labour candidates they support) locally but it was not an item on the agenda at all. Of course I can raise a question in the future. G, again, why doesn’t the Co-operative put it out in public that it funds a political party and then see what customers think? I think most – Labour supporters or not – do not want their shopping to fund party politics and would find it distasteful. I agree in part with William Hobhouse and Hove Howard – the political party link should be broken, and yes democratic structures are useless if not used (we know plenty about entryism in Liverpool, and it has afflicted Lib Dem local parties too in other places).
Simon Thompson. I wasn’t “unaware of the links between the co-operative movement and the Labour Party” – I was unaware of specific political funding. I agree they have more in common with Liberal policy traditionally.
Krissie, ignoring how appalling the last Government was (from about 2000 – 2009 in my view) does not help give credibility to genuine and accurate (some) criticism of this Government. I do agree this issue should be separate to party politics, though. Emsworthian, a similar point. I could make all the Lib Dem excuses about funding, and with far fewer donors the Lib Dems have made some big mistakes but have always depended on ordinary members most of all. I’m not making points suggesting funding of any political party. Sponsorship of specific events at a conference to get a message across seems like reasonable campaigning activity to me.
interesting discussion, thanks Kiron for provoking it! The Committee on Standards in Public Life will very shortly publish its report on party funding, will be interesting if this sort of corporate donations is covered. But we all know there are really only two issues – will the Tories accept a low cap on individual donations in return for Labour going without the huge block grants from their union mates?
Any constructive suggestions on what can actually DO about the situation. I am very involved in the Fairtrade movement where the Co-op excels (even in local labour party show little real interest) and it is our local corner shop providing a good service and we use it increasingly.
Do should I be going along to meetings ? how do I find out who other Lib Dem members are ?
Suzanne, I thing go along to meetings in your area and see what happens and raise it if you wish to do so. At the moment I’m observing at meetings (which are genuinely interesting) and will raise this issue at some point which seems appropriate. I would just chat as normal to other local members as they may also be members of the Co-operative, some may be active or interested in attending meetings. I have found my local areas meetings interesting, if the first one a bit lengthy, the second one was better managed. The ‘Report of the Co-operative Party in Merseyside’ at the last meeting did not mention anything about money. It did say that Party Council “participated in a range of debates around constructing co-operative and mutual policies to be implemented by a future Labour Government.” What a cop out if the movement is abdicating action on political change now to wait for a Labour Government. At the same time the policies were not ones that I disagreed with.
“Why is a consumer and social movement that says it has ethical principles supporting a party that backed the most right wing, illiberal, intolerant, pro-big business Government that this country has ever seen? ”
You shouldn’t, that is why you should stop supporting the Liberal Democrats, who are helping the Conservatives in doing such that and vote Labour at the next election.