April EC Minutes (Unamended)
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MINUTES OF THE 4th MEETING OF THE 117TH EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
THE SOCIALIST PARTY OF GREAT BRITAIN
HEAD OFFICE, SATURDAY 4th APRIL 2020
(Online meeting)
Present: S.Kennedy, M.Foster, J.Cohen, P.Shannon, T.Hart
Apologies: L.Stevens, M.Browne, J.Shodeke
Chair: P.Shannon
Meeting opened at 1:10pm
1. Election of Chair: P.Shannon
Kennedy/Hart – Agreed
2. Amendment and adoption of the previous meeting minutes (p. 8)
(a) Re §4(a) (“Forms C’s from all Branches received assides from NL and Edinburgh, though the expenditure and collection has been submitted.” [sic])
i. E-mail from the North London Secretary (21 March):
Noted, and amended to North East.
(b) Re §§5(t)i and 5(u)ii (Reports of the Socialist Standard Production Committee and Standing Orders Committee to Conference 2020), note from the Assistant Secretary (31 March):
RESOLUTION: Hart/Foster- “That the report be adopted.”
(Agreed)
RESOLUTION: Foster/Hart- “That the minutes be adopted as amended.”
(Agreed)
3. Matters arising from previous minutes (a) Matters arising from the October 2019 meeting minutes
i. Re §4(g) (“The EC authorises Kent & Sussex Branch to purchase a gazebo up to a price limit of £100”), email and resolution from Kent & Sussex (22 March):
RESOLUTION: Hart/Foster- “That the further expenditure of £60 be approved.”
(Agreed)
(b) Matters arising from the March 2020 meeting minutes
i. Re §3(c)iii (“That a call out be made for all sub committees”), note from the Assistant Secretary (31 March):
RESOLUTION: Hart/Foster- “That the ad hoc committee into Regional Restructuring of the party be disbanded.”
(Agreed)
ii. Re §3(c)iii (“That a call out be made for all sub committees”), accepted nominations by KSRB of Cde G Thomas to the Publications Committee (carried 3–0–0), and by West London of Cde C Skelly to the Publications Committee (voting figures not provided)
RESOLUTION: Kennedy/Foster- “That the nominations be accepted and appointed.”
(Agreed)
RESOLUTION: Hart/Foster- “Late nominations to the MAC be accepted. (Paul Bennett, Howard Moss, Richard Botterill.”
(Agreed)
iii. Re §3(c)iii (“That a call out be made to fill the 2 vacancies to the EC as well as 1 auditor and 1 trustee.”), e-mail from Cde Moss to the Assistant Secretary (31 March):
RESOLUTION: Hart/Kennedy- “That Comrade Moss be appointed as Party Trustee.”
(Agreed)
iv. Re §3(e)ii (“The EC is in favour of a non EC member collating details of the charges against Comrade Alvarenga and responses to them from Comrade Alvarenga and others, as well as ascertaining who it is that is making the allegations. All correspondence should go through these collators and be submitted to the April EC and Comrade Alvarenga. Then this information to be presented at Conference.”), report of the General Secretary Tristan Miller and Adam Buick have accepted the roles of collating the necessary information to be presented at Conference.
(c) Notices of Business (Foster): Employers renewal and Insurance necessary for premises committee actioned [Note: This is minuted in the March 2020 meeting minutes as “on agenda next month” which I
understand to mean that it is deferred until the April meeting. —TM]
Note payment undergoing
4. Report of the Treasurer
(a) Report of the Treasurer to Conference 2020 (6 March; p. 20)
Adopted
(b) Report of the Treasurer to the April 2020 EC meeting (28 March):
RESOLUTION: Foster/Hart “That the accounts be approved for submission to the Election Commission”
(Agreed)
RESOLUTION: Hart/Kennedy- “That the report under Head Office – Remote Working and Data Compliance Arrangements, and recommendations, be accepted and adopted.”
(Agreed)
RESOLUTION: Cohen/Foster- “That the HSBC Debit Card Access Procedure previously agreed by the EC (except that part relating to the PayPal account) be suspended while movement restrictions caused by the
coronavirus epidemic persist, and the Treasurer be authorised to hold the card in order to facilitate legitimate Party transactions, as agreed with the Assistant Treasurer.”
(Accepted 5-0-0)
5. Reports of and new matters relating to Party Officers, Party Appointees, and Subcommittees
(a) Advertising and Enquiries
(b) Assistant Secretary
(c) Audio Visual
(d) Auditors
(e) Ballot
(f) Blog
(g) Campaigns and Media
(h) Central Branch Secretary
(i) Central Organiser
(j) Education
(k) Election
(l) General Secretary
(m) Head Office Organiser
(n) Internet
(o) Investment
i. Report of the Investment Committee to Conference 2020 (9 March):
RESOLUTION: Hart/Foster- “That the report be adopted.”
(Agreed)
(p) Library and Archives
(q) Membership Applications
i. Form A for Hong Songwei (via the 2019 Membership Applications Committee)
Accepted
(r) Premises i. E-mail from Cde Browne (16 March)
Deferred
(s) Publications
i. E-mail from Cde Shannon (2 March):
Deferred
ii. Report of the Publications Committee to Conference 2020 (8 March):
RESOLUTION: Hart/Foster- “That the report be adopted.”
(Agreed)
Meeting adjourned for break at 3:00pm
Meeting resumed at 3:23pm
(t) Socialist Standard
(u) Standing Orders
i. Final Agenda (p. 25) and Collected Reports (p. 32) for Conference 2020
General discussion on state of party activity online during the epidemic.
RESOLUTION: Shannon/Hart- “That a fund of up to £5000 be established to provide smartphones and 30- day sim contracts to non-internet connected Party office holders to cover the next three months initially as
part of our response to the crisis and for the duration until it had abated.”
(Carried 5-0-0) +44 20 7622 3811
spgb@worldsocialism.org
RESOLUTION: Hart/Foster- “The EC views with extreme concern the practice of continuing to dispatch the Standard from Head Office, thereby exposing members to extra risk during the current pandemic, and urges
the SSPC to investigate dispatch facilities via the printers as a matter of urgency.”
(Carried 5-0-0)
RESOLUTION: Hart/Foster- “As a matter of urgency, the Treasurer arrange for Comrade Alvarenga to be replaced by Comrade Jonathan Cohen as signatory to the Santander and HSBC accounts.”
(Carried 5-0-0)
(v) Trustees
6. Correspondence
(a) Matters of urgency
(b) Correspondence from or concerning Branches, the Party in general, and members
(c) Correspondence from Companion Parties and Groups
i. Report of the Proceedings of the Spring School and the 26th Annual Conference of the World Socialist
Party (India) (p. 44) -Noted
ii. World Socialist Party (India) Executive Committee minutes, March 2020 (p. 45) -Noted
(d) All other correspondence
7. Notices of Motion
8. Notices of Business
9. Any other business
10. Nomination of Chair for the next meeting
Meeting adjourned at 5:30pmQuite staggering that three EC members, including two from the same branch, can’t bring themselves to even attend an online meeting.
That comment is a bit misjudged if not ill informed.
I eavesdropped into that EC meeting and some comrades did attempt to get aboard, one from abroad, without success or with only partial success.
I could hear, surprisingly, but not be heard, but I had only intended to lurk anyway.
It was a successful event by and large with untried software and everyone even those in the meeting had individual difficulties to overcome.
“That comment is a bit misjudged if not ill informed.”
It was neither. Although no longer a member of the SPGB I would humbly suggest that I remain better informed than many members.
The real reason for the absence of two of the three members is that neither have internet access at home. If that’s because they’re ‘poverty stricken’ why haven’t they requested financial assistance from the Party considering they are both members of important sub-committees as well as the Executive Committee? If that’s not the case then their continued membership of the respective committees should be called into question, I would have thought, especially in view of the current crisis.
The third absentee, appointed by the EC at its February 2020 meeting, has not attended any meeting this year thus far, either in person or virtually.
They only just agreed to that at this meeting.
RESOLUTION: Shannon/Hart- “That a fund of up to £5000 be established to provide smartphones and 30- day sim contracts to non-internet connected Party office holders to cover the next three months initially as
part of our response to the crisis and for the duration until it had abated.”
(Carried 5-0-0)Yes I know all about that motion but financial assistance could have been provided at any time. The purchase of a couple of laptops and broadband contracts would have been a drop in the ocean compared with other outgoings. But no, the EC only acted when faced with a crisis.
Alas, Dave, when it comes to the internet, the Party has closed the barn door after the horse has bolted.
How often have we heard individual members advocate a more interactive presence on the web, the use of streaming, for instance. It was never viewed as a priority because I think the technology scared us. Or at least the implications did.
I for one can be grateful for the Party’s financial assistance some years back in acquiring a new laptop when my old one became unrepairable at a time I was flat broke and could not continue any activity. So yes, the Party has always been able to help out members.
I also for one would like the cash to be doshed out about much more to help our companion parties. But these organisations must have a strategy on how to use the money.
I won’t criticise any individual members of the EC for failure to fulfil the undertakings of their membership of the committee. Circumstances can change. Also, it means turning our attention to all those who fail to attend branch meetings.
My own bug-bear is members who do possess the capability yet won’t even visit the Party’s social media, much less help out as Robin has been urging us to do for just 10 minutes a month.
We are a voluntary organisation and rely on all our members good-will.
I suppose the one exception being those regular almost perennial proposals to actually employ a paid Head Office organiser and then we could make bigger demands upon his or her remit.
But with this new development of Discord which will understandably take time to fully roll out and gain acceptance, it is a positive move that will benefit the Party in many various ways. I view it as another step closer to a one united world socialist party, but that is just me.
See tonight on Discord for the talk this evening at 6.30 GMT from the comrade in Las Vegas even if it is the middle of the night for you.
p.s. Dave, do you want an invite to join so you can listen to the EC meeting on Sunday 3 May?
“p.s. Dave, do you want an invite to join so you can listen to the EC meeting on Sunday 3 May?”
Oh, please, perish the thought! 😥 But thanks for the offer. 🙄
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