Urgent- Use your vote for the Co-op Group AGM

After 98 years of changing Britain for the better, the Co-operative's voice in politics could be silenced.  You have the power to keep it.

Showing a grotesque ignorance of the history, values and strength of the Co-operative Movement,  Allan Leighton the new Chief Executive of the Co-Operative Group (Britain's largest co-operative, and a major supporter of the Co-operative Party) has said that "It's the apples not the activists that will transform the Co-op"

If you have received a Co-op AGM pack via post or email, the deadline to vote online is noon on Wednesday 13th May.

The Co-operative Party is at risk. Time is running out save it. Vote 'YES' to motions 9 and 10 to keep the link.

For more information visit http://keepit.coop/how_to_vote or watch the film below.

There's also a great article from Paul Routledge in the Mirror, where he exposes what he calls a "Trojan Horse" style plot to strip the progressive politics from the Co-op.

Co-operators standing in Old Town, Eastbourne

Labour and the Co-operative Party have a joint slate of candidates for Eastbourne Borough Council's Old Town ward on May 7th. Chair of East Sussex Co-operative Party Jean Couture is joined by journalist Paul Richards and Unite Equalities organiser Sharon Wentworth in leading the campaign for co-operative values in Eastbourne. You can find out about them, and their opponents, on the Eastbourne Herald website here.

Sarah Owen is a Labour and Co-op Candidate for Hastings in the General Election; and the Labour candidates in Eastbourne (Jake Lambert), Lewes (Lloyd Russell-Moyle) and Bexhill and Battle (Michelle Thew) are individual members of East Sussex Co-operative Party. Branch secretary Dave Brinson is standing as a Labour candidate in the Devonshire ward of Eastbourne.

For electoral law purposes, the info about Old Town candidates is published by Lisa Gilette on behalf of Jean Couture, Paul Richards and Sharon Wentworth, all of 1 West Street, Eastbourne.

Keep it Co-op ! What's at Stake....

The very act of co-operation is political. 
For over 150 years, working people have been setting up co-operatives to defend themselves against the excesses of the market and working together to improve their lives. While some of the challenges we face today are different, the movement’s cause remains the same. Whether it’s a question of taking on the vested interests of the energy companies, the train operators, or even the payday lenders, co-operative and mutuals are providing a means through which people can help change corporate behaviour for the better. Since it was founded in 1917, the Co-operative Party has been a voice for a fundamental change in the way our country works.

The Co-operative Group is Britain’s largest co-operative
...making up about 85% of the co-operative retail sector - and one of the largest co-operatives in the world. Anyone can join the Co-operative and, as a co-operative, it is owned by its members rather than shareholders. The Group has around eight million members who have a right to vote to elect members of the National Membership Council and the Board and who earn a share of the profits of the business – known as the dividend or ‘divi’. The Co-operative Group aims to be the most socially responsible business in the UK, offering members and customers not only value, but values.

The Co-operative Party was founded in 1917 to represent and defend the co-op movement, though our roots go back all the way to 1844 and the Rochdale Pioneers, the founders of the modern day Co-operative Movement. The Party has had an electoral agreement with the Labour Party since 1927, which enables us to stand joint candidates in elections. While there is an ideological connection, this relationship is also a strategic decision made by the co-operative movement to maximise our ability to influence policy and legislation that is rooted in co-operative values.

Each year the Co-operative Group, along with other co-operative, pays a subscription (its membership fee) to support the Party’s work. In the run up to the May’s Annual General Meeting, the Group will ask its members whether to authorise the subscription and continue the nearly 100 year partnership with the Co-operative Party.

We believe the partnership with the Co-operative Party is vital if the Group wants to be at the heart of a co-operative resurgence. We provide strategic political leadership and support, driving forward policy solutions, opening up new areas for the movement to expand into.

The Co-operative Party is the guardian of the co-operative movement’s powerful values and inspiring vision, and a vital tool in achieving its profoundly political objectives.  Our aim is to deepen and enhance the link so the Group and its Members benefit, as well as society and our communities. We can create a stronger, more sustainable future together.

TAKE ACTION TODAY
Click here to find out how you can support the Keep it Co-op Campaign

Branch Meeting: Saturday 21st March

There will be a meeting of the East Sussex Branch of the Co-operative Party on Saturday 21st March, 2015, 10.30am at the Central Methodist Church, Langney Road, Eastbourne.

Our guest speaker will be Lis Telcs, National Executive Member, about the Keep it Co-op campaign.

Each year the Co-operative Group, along with other co-operative, pays a subscription (its membership fee) to support the Party’s work. In the run up to the May’s Annual General Meeting, the Group will ask its members whether to authorise the subscription and continue the nearly 100 year partnership with the Co-operative Party.

We believe the partnership with the Co-operative Party is vital if the Group wants to be at the heart of a co-operative resurgence. We provide strategic political leadership and support, driving forward policy solutions, opening up new areas for the movement to expand into.

The Co-operative Party is the guardian of the co-operative movement’s powerful values and inspiring vision, and a vital tool in achieving its profoundly political objectives.

Our aim is to deepen and enhance the link so the Group and its Members benefit, as well as society and our communities. We can create a stronger, more sustainable future together.

Members of the Labour Party are also invited to hear Lis, and participate in the discussion about the Keep it Co-op Campaign.


A G E N D A

1. Apologies for Absence
2. Minutes of the last ordinary meeting held November 2014
3. BRIEFLY: Matters Arising

4. BRIEF Reports:
a) Membership
b) Treasurer
c) Constituency Labour Parties
d) Sussex Co-operative Party Council
e) Any other Reports

5. KEEP IT CO-OP: with Lis Telcs- Co-op Party National Executive Committee Member. Update on the threats and challenges facing the Party, and the campaign to promote the political link and a genuine Co-operative movement !

6. Elections Update
7. Any Other Business Tea and Coffee will be available at the meeting.

 

Eastbourne Labour selects Co-operator

Congratulations to East Sussex Co-operative Party member Jake Lambert, who has been selected as Labour's prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Eastbourne.

Jake is well known to local Co-op branch members, especially for his active campaigning against payday loan companies (which have relied on the conspicuous support of local Lib Dem MP Stephen Lloyd).

Jake is Chair of Eastbourne Labour Party.  He is a teacher at a local secondary school, and lives with his partner Louise (also a teacher) and their dog Oscar, in Eastbourne's Old Town.

Find out more about Jake's campaign here.

Branch Meeting: November 1st

There will be a meeting of the East Sussex Branch of the Co-operative Party on Saturday 1st November, 2014 10.30am, at the Central Methodist Church, Langney Road, Eastbourne.

A G E N D A

1. Apologies for Absence
2. Minutes of the last ordinary  meeting  held August 2014
3. Matters Arising
4. Reports:
          a) Membership
          b) Treasurer
          c) Constituency Labour Parties
          d) Sussex Co-operative Party Council
          e)  Any other Reports

5. Co-operative Values in the General Election campaign- especially how we can support    campaigning in Hastings, Lewes and Eastbourne where we have branch members standing. 6. Any other business, including date of next  meeting

Tea and Coffee will be available at the meeting.

Co-op Party Policy: Have your say !

At Co-operative Party Annual Conference 2014 we'll be discussing policy in 6 key areas.

• Consumer Affairs and Co-operative Development
• Health and Social Care
• Women and Equalities
• Communities and Local Government
• Energy and Environment
• International Development

The draft policy papers that will be debated are now available by clicking the links above.  If you' have additional ideas or amendments, you can submit these through our local branch, or e-mail the Co-operative Party directly by clicking here.