10 Things I Learned On Labour's NEC
I spent three years as the Youth Rep on Labour's governing body. Here's what I learned.
1. You can hold people to account but you can’t always stop bad things happening.
2. And sometimes you can.
3. Often it takes a lot of hard work.
Even when an argument has been made, someone needs to make it again. And again. And again. But we can get there in the end.
4. Being on the NEC can be frustrating. And often not fun*. Getting a 100-year-old party to change isn’t easy. But it is worth it.
*until Dennis Skinner pipes up with a spectacular intervention.
5. You start to think that rules are exciting…
…once you’ve got to grips with it all.
6. But actually it’s the party’s culture that needs to change.
Especially if we’re serious about being the party of equality… That’s why I’ve prioritised women’s safety, the introduction of a comprehensive bullying and harassment policy and creating a welcoming and inclusive culture – and will continue to fight for this until the party acts.
7. We have incredibly strong, impressive and witty members.
But no one should face abuse – and especially not from the very party you work so hard for day-in, day-out.
8. You get invited to cool events.
But the best events are those that give us chance to hear from and campaign with party members.
9. You achieve most when you’re campaigning with members, not just attending long NEC meetings (and they are LONG)...
With members’ help I’ve got more young women involved, made selections fairer, ensured women aren’t cut out of the conversations at conferences, put sexual harassment on the agenda and pushed the party for action, introduced training, campaigning and social events for young members, got young people's ideas into the general election manifesto and significantly increased our campaigning capacity in target constituencies.
10. Being a great NEC rep means working hard to deliver change for members. I am proud of my record of delivery and will never stop fighting for our grassroots members and for a more equal Labour Party, where everyone can get involved.
