National Executive Committee
Headquarters | London, England |
---|---|
Chair | Paddy Lillis |
Vice-Chair | Ellie Reeves |
Parent organisation | Labour Party |
Website | Labour.org.uk/NEC |
The National Executive Committee (NEC) is the chief administrative body of the Labour Party. Its composition has changed over the years, and includes representatives of affiliated trade unions, the Parliamentary Labour Party and European Parliamentary Labour Party, constituency Labour parties, and socialist societies, as well as ex officio members such as the Party Leader and Deputy Leader and several of their appointees.
During the 1980s, the NEC had a major role in policy-making and was often at the heart of disputes over party policy. In the Tony Blair era, the committee's role declined and its membership was reformed, but it remains the administrative authority of the party. Its former policy development function is now largely carried out by the National Policy Forum. One of its committees has disciplinary powers including the ability to expel members of the party who have brought it into disrepute or to readmit previously expelled members.
The Labour History Archive and Study Centre, in the People's History Museum in Manchester has the full run of the minutes of the National Executive Committee in their collection.[1]
Membership
As of 2015, the NEC had 33 members elected from the following constituencies:
- 1: Leader of the Labour Party
- 1: Deputy Leader of the Labour Party
- 1: Treasurer
- 3: Opposition Front Bench (MPs nominated by the Shadow Cabinet)
- 1: EPLP Leader
- 1: Young Labour
- 12: Trade Unions
- 2: Socialist Societies and BAME Labour
- 6: Constituency Labour Parties
- 2: Labour Councillors
- 3: PLP/EPLP (Backbench MPs or MEPs elected by all Labour MPs and MEPs)
In addition, the PLP Chief Whip, PLP Chair, Scottish Labour Leader and Leader of the Labour Group in the National Assembly for Wales attend ex-officio without a vote.
The General Secretary acts as the non-voting secretary to the NEC.
Current members
Leader of the Labour Party
- Jeremy Corbyn MP (Leader of the Labour Party)[2]
Deputy Leader of the Labour Party
- Tom Watson MP (Deputy Leader of the Labour Party)
Treasurer
- Diana Holland (Treasurer)
Frontbench MPs
- Jon Ashworth MP (Opposition Front Bench)
- Angela Eagle MP (Opposition Front Bench)
- Rebecca Long-Bailey MP (Opposition Front Bench)
EPLP Leader
- Glenis Willmott MEP (EPLP Leader)
Young Labour
- Jasmin Beckett (Young Labour)
Trade unions
- Keith Birch [Unison] (Div. I - Trade Unions)
- Jamie Bramwell [UCATT] (Div. I - Trade Unions)
- Jennie Formby [Unite] (Div. I - Trade Unions)
- Andi Fox [TSSA] (Div. I - Trade Unions)
- Jim Kennedy [Unite] (Div. I - Trade Unions)
- Andy Kerr [CWU] (Div. I - Trade Unions)
- Paddy Lillis [USDAW] (Chair – Div. I - Trade Unions)
- Martin Mayer [Unite] (Div. I - Trade Unions)
- Pauline McCarthy [BFAWU] (Div. I - Trade Unions)
- Wendy Nichols [Unison (Div. I - Trade Unions)
- Cath Speight [GMB] (Div. I - Trade Unions)
- Mary Turner [GMB] (Div. I - Trade Unions)
Socialist Societies and BAME Labour
- James Asser (Div. II - Socialist Societies)
- Keith Vaz MP (Div. II - BAME Labour)
CLPs
- Johanna Baxter (Div. III - CLPs)
- Ann Black (Div. III - CLPs)
- Ken Livingstone (Div. III - CLPs)
- Ellie Reeves (NEC Vice-chair - Div. III - CLPs)
- Christine Shawcroft (Div. III - CLPs)
- Pete Willsman (Div. III - CLPs)
Labour Councillors
- Cllr Ann Lucas (Div. IV - Labour Councillors)
- Cllr Alice Perry (Div. IV - Labour Councillors)
PLP/EPLP
- Margaret Beckett MP (Div. V - PLP/EPLP)
- Shabana Mahmood MP (Div. V - PLP/EPLP)
- Dennis Skinner MP (Div. V - PLP/EPLP)
Chair of the Labour Party
The chair of the party is elected by the NEC from among its own members, and holds office for a calendar year, chairing both NEC meetings and national party conferences.
The name of this post has become confused since 2001 when Labour Party leader Tony Blair appointed Charles Clarke to the courtesy position of "Party Chair" without the NEC or the national conference authorising such a position.[3] The office's name remains "chair of the party" in the Labour Party Constitution, but elsewhere the party presents the position as "Chair of the NEC".[4] Prior to 2001 the position was called "Chair of the Labour Party", and before that "Chairman of the Labour Party".
List of Chairs of the Party
(Information taken from 'British Political Facts 1900-1994', Butler & Butler 1994, PP144–5 the period down to 1993).
Chairmen of the Annual Conference of the Labour Representation Committee[5]
- 1900: William Charles Steadman MP
- 1901: John Hodge
- 1902: William John Davis
- 1903: Joseph Nicholas Bell
- 1904: John Hodge
- 1905: Arthur Henderson MP
Chairmen of the National Executive Committee of the Labour Representation Committee[6]
- 1900: William Charles Steadman MP
- 1901: Allan Gee
- 1902: Richard Bell MP
- 1903: John Hodge
- 1904: David J. Shackleton
- 1905: Arthur Henderson MP
Chairmen of the Annual Conference of the Labour Party[7]
- 1906: Arthur Henderson MP
- 1907: J. J. Stephenson
- 1908: Walter Hudson MP
- 1909: John Robert Clynes MP
- 1910: Keir Hardie MP
- 1911: William Cornforth Robinson
- 1912: Ben Turner
- 1913: George Henry Roberts MP
- 1914: Tom Fox
- 1915: No conference held
- 1916: William Crawford Anderson MP
- 1917: George Wardle MP (acting)
- 1917-18: W. F. Purdy
- 1918-19: John McGurk
- 1919-20: William Harold Hutchinson
- 1920-21: Alexander Gordon Cameron
- 1921-22: Fred Jowett MP
- 1922-23: Sidney Webb MP
- 1923-24: Ramsay MacDonald MP
- 1924-25: Charlie Cramp
- 1925-26: Robert Williams
- 1926-27: Frederick Roberts MP[8]
- 1927-28: George Lansbury MP
- 1928-29: Herbert Morrison MP
- 1929-30: Susan Lawrence MP
- 1930-31: Stanley Hirst
- 1931-32: George Lathan MP
- 1932-33: Joseph Compton
- 1933-34: Walter R. Smith
- 1934-35: William Albert Robinson
- 1935-36: Jennie Adamson
- 1936-37: Hugh Dalton MP
- 1937-39: George Dallas (no conference in 1938)
- 1939-40: Barbara Gould
- 1940-41: James Walker MP
- 1941-42: Walter Henry Green MP[9]
- 1942-43: Alfred Dobbs
- 1943-44: George Ridley MP
- 1944-45: Ellen Wilkinson MP
- 1945-46: Harold Laski
- 1946-47: Philip Noel-Baker MP
- 1947-48: Emmanuel Shinwell MP
- 1948-49: Jim Griffiths MP
- 1949-50: Sam Watson
- 1950-51: Alice Bacon MP
- 1951-52: Harry Earnshaw
- 1952-53: Arthur Greenwood MP
- 1953-54: Wilfrid Burke MP
- 1954-55: Edith Summerskill MP
- 1955-56: Edwin Gooch MP
- 1956-57: Margaret Herbison MP
- 1957-58: Tom Driberg
- 1958-59: Barbara Castle MP
- 1959-60: George Brinham
- 1960-61: Richard Crossman MP
- 1961-62: Harold Wilson MP
- 1962-63: Dai Davies
- 1963-64: Anthony Greenwood MP
- 1964-65: Ray Gunter MP
- 1965-66: Walter Padley MP
- 1966-67: John McFarlane Boyd
- 1967-68: Jennie Lee MP
- 1968-69: Eirene White MP
- 1969-70: Arthur Skeffington MP
- 1970-71: Ian Mikardo MP
- 1971-72: Tony Benn MP
- 1972-73: William Simpson
- 1973-74: James Callaghan MP
- 1974-75: Fred Mulley MP
- 1975-76: Tom Bradley MP
- 1976-77: John Chalmers
- 1977-78: Joan Lestor MP
- 1978-79: Frank Allaun MP
- 1979-80: Lena Jeger
- 1980-81: Alex Kitson
- 1981–82: Judith Hart MP
- 1982–83: Sam McCluskie
- 1983–84: Eric Heffer MP
- 1984–85: Alan Hadden
- 1985–86: Neville Hough
- 1986–87: Syd Tierney
- 1987–88: Neil Kinnock MP
- 1988–89: Dennis Skinner MP
- 1989–90: Jo Richardson MP
- 1990–91: Tom Sawyer
- 1991–92: John Evans MP
- 1992–93: Tony Clarke
- 1993–94: David Blunkett MP
- 1994–95: Gordon Colling
- 1995–96: Diana Jeuda
- 1996–97: Robin Cook MP
- 1997–98: Richard Rosser
- 1998–99: Brenda Etchells
- 1999-00: Vernon Hince
- 2000-01: Maggie Jones
- 2001-02: Margaret Wall
- 2002-03: Diana Holland
- 2003-04: Mary Turner
- 2004-05: Ian McCartney MP
- 2005-06: Jeremy Beecham
- 2006-07: Michael Griffiths
- 2007-08: Dianne Hayter
- 2008-09: Cath Speight
- 2009-10: Ann Black
- 2010-11: Norma Stephenson
- 2011-12: Michael Cashman MEP
- 2012-13: Harriet Yeo
- 2013-14: Angela Eagle MP
- 2014-15: Jim Kennedy
- 2015-16: Paddy Lillis
See also
References
- ↑ Collection Catalogues and Descriptions, People's History Museum
- ↑ Labour's National Executive Committee – The Labour Party http://www.labour.org.uk/pages/labours-national-executive-committee
- ↑ Roy Hattersley (26 July 2001). "Blair mistook his Clarke for a chair". The Guardian. Retrieved 24 May 2007.
- ↑ "NEC committees". Labour Party. Retrieved 24 May 2007.
- ↑ 'British Political Facts 1900-1994', Butler & Butler 1994, PP144-5
- ↑ Kevin Jefferys, Leading Labour: From Keir Hardie to Tony Blair, p.4
- ↑ 'British Political Facts 1900-1994', Butler & Butler 1994, pp.144-5 for the period down to 1993
- ↑ "Who's Who". Ukwhoswho.com. Retrieved 2012-03-18.
- ↑ "Who's Who". Ukwhoswho.com. Retrieved 2012-03-18.