Women’s Equality Party Conference 2023
Conference 2023 Agenda Committee
Saturday 4th - Sunday 5th November 2023
The Women’s Equality Party Agenda Committee is excited to invite applications to join our team. Members of the Agenda Committee do the vital work of reviewing motion and amendment proposals and selecting the agenda for conference, in line with the motion guidelines >>
Who are the Agenda Committee?
- Members appointed from the Steering Committee:
- Members with key skills and/or perspectives invited to join the committee
- Members from the WE membership who will be randomly selected from a pool of those who apply to join the committee
We are seeking five members from the membership of the Women’s Equality Party to fulfil this important role for conference.
These members will be chosen at random and training will be provided on 14th August.
Our role as the Agenda Committee
The Agenda Committee’s remit is to ensure that conference agenda includes appropriately composed motions and amendments that encourage debate in respect of the issues that engage the membership and leadership of the party at this time.
As members of the Agenda Committee, our role is not to debate or refuse motions based on their merit, but to focus objectively on the task of reviewing whether motions and amendments meet the requirements of the WE constitution and the motions guidelines >>
Under the WE constitution the Agenda Committee has the discretion to accept, amend or refuse a motion and/or amendment as follows:
- refuse a motion that contravenes the seven core objectives of the party, the WE constitution or the WE code,
- redraft a motion or amendment proposed in order to clarify its wording;
- decide to treat any removable part of a motion or amendment as a separate motion or amendment; and
- create a composite of similar motions or amendments;
- refuse a motion in order to maintain the party conference time-frame.
The Agenda Committee will review every motion and amendment to make sure it meets the threshold requirements. These are that:
- the signatory and proposer requirements are met;
- it is clear and concise and precise;
- it does not exceed word limits;
- it does not contravene the WE constitution; and
- it is directly relevant to WE's seven objectives and/or mission.
The Agenda Committee may refuse a motion on the grounds of lack of time for debate.
The Agenda Committee is tasked with selecting motions for debate that meet the threshold requirements and provoke the most interesting and relevant debate, representing the full range of motions submitted, and avoiding duplication or overlap wherever possible.
Therefore good grounds for selecting a motion are that it is:
- genuinely new and interesting (not a repeat of existing policy/business); and/or
- on a subject where WE don’t have much policy or which hasn’t been debated at conference recently; and/or
- on a subject of high political salience; and/or
- likely to lead to an interesting debate, with enthusiastic speakers on both sides
Good grounds for refusing a motion are where it is:
- repeating existing policy with nothing novel to debate; and/or
- repeating a debate recently held; and/or
- so universally agreeable as to be unlikely to encourage good debate.
The skills the Agenda Committee needs
- A desire to be part of a diverse team dedicated to enabling conference to be dynamic and transparent;
- A fair and equitable attitude;
- An ability to absorb and analyse complex and technical material quickly and efficiently;
- A good knowledge and understanding of, or willingness to learn, WE policies and the WE constitution.
Time Commitment
Applicants will need to be willing to make a real commitment in terms of putting aside time and capacity to attend meetings and to work outside of formal Agenda Committee meetings as well. The timetable for preparation for conference is tight, therefore the two weeks 13-28 September and 13-20 October are when the bulk of the work will be done including meetings, although there will be some work involved in the month from 14 August to 13 September, and again on the weekend of the 28th and 29th October.
Online training will be delivered on 14th August.
Application Process
We very much hope you will apply to join the Agenda Committee as we are keen to make the conference agenda the best it can possibly be. The deadline for applications is 10.00am on Wednesday 9th August 2023. Successful applicants will be informed via email.