Current C1.VIII.6
All powers of the NEC may be exercised as the NEC deems appropriate through its elected officers, committees, sub-committees, the General Secretary and other national and regional officials and designated representatives appointed by the NEC or the General Secretary. For the avoidance of doubt, it is hereby declared that the NEC shall have the power to delegate its powers to such officers and shall see fit. Further, it shall be deemed always to have had such power.
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All powers of the NEC shall not be exercised in a manner that that is, or could be seen as, capricious, arbitrary, perverse, irrational, or contrary to natural justice and due process as indicated in article 6 of the European Convention of Human Rights. Any decisions taken by the NEC, or others acting on behalf of the NEC, shall not be made in a manner that is, or could be seen as, capricious, arbitrary, perverse, irrational, or contrary to natural justice and due process as indicated in article 6 of the European Convention of Human Rights.
Constituency Labour Parties can submit either a rule-change proposal or a motion. Most, of course, decide to submit motions. However, motions will reach conference floor only if the topic the CAC classifies them into wins in the priority ballot (for six topics from CLPs, six from unions) and if the CAC does not rule them out of order for being “on more than one subject” or some other reason.
CLPs have to decide by mid-June about submitting a rule-change proposal, though if they decide not to, they have until mid-September to decide on a motion.
12 noon, Friday 17 June 2022 – Closing date for Constitutional Amendments and CLP delegations
5pm, Thursday 15 September 2022 – Deadline for receipt of motions
12 noon, Thursday 22 September 2022 – Deadline for emergency motions
Sunday 25 September to Wednesday 28 September 2022 – Annual Conference 2022, in Liverpool
This draft wording above is obviously less direct than we would wish, but it is specially designed so as not to fall foul of the “three-year rule” which would nix other wordings. The formulation “capricious, arbitrary, perverse or irrational” comes from the court in the McNicol case https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evangelou_v_McNicol ruling that powers of the NEC must be taken as limited by that criterion.
Excluding people for articles or interviews from years ago, especially if such articles or interviews were clearly part of a process of debate, seems “capricious, arbitrary, perverse and irrational”.