The Federal Conference Committee met via Zoom call on Saturday, 11 July for the agenda selection for our first virtual conference. The meeting was a lengthy one, which was in part due to the large selection of varied motions we received, but also to give us breaks from staring at computer screens for a number of hours.
As you will be aware, this year we will not be heading to the sunny beaches of Brighton, but instead you will be able to take part in Conference from your own home via our third party provider, Hopin. You will be able to find more information about the virtual conference https://www.libdems.org.uk/autumn-conference.
The FCC wants to pay its thanks to the extraordinary efforts of the Conference Office team and members who have worked so incredibly hard to make our first virtual conference happen. It is been a long and challenging process, as we wanted to make sure that we are able to replicate – as much as feasibly possible – the physical conference for our members. I also understand that Glee will also be happening virtually; although we will not all be crammed into one room at the conference hotel to enjoy it.
You will see from the timings of Conference that it is slightly different to the usual format, and we hope that this will give more people an opportunity to attend virtually.
A total of nine conference motions (plus two emergency slots, two later deadline motions on COVID and Europe.) In addition we have reserved time for two consultation sessions as requested by the Federal Board and the Federal Policy Committee.
The agenda will also include the Committee and Parliamentary reports, the Leaders Q&A and a number of Q&As and set-pieces set aside for Spokespeople and/or Leaders of the Welsh or Scottish Lib Dems. The full agenda will be published shortly.
On the topic of motions selection we always receive a very large number of motions for selection at Conference, and unfortunately cannot always choose all of them for selection at Conference. This year we received 45 motions and have selected nine motions, plus the 4 emergency/later deadline motions mentioned above.
Below I have included the selection grid of motions, and if they have been selected or not selected. You will see that some motions were selected but then eliminated at the second round which was due to time constraints. I have not included why the motion was not selected, this has been provided to the submitters of the motion. Please note that you can submit amendments to the motions by 14 September at 13:00 via the Conference Website.
| Brexit and International Trade | ||
| A | A Liberal Approach to Trade after Brexit | Not selected |
| B | European Union | Not selected |
| Communities and Local Government | ||
| A | Social Housing | Not selected |
| B | Decentralising Government “As Local As Possible” | Not selected |
| Crime, Justice, Equalities and Civil Liberties | ||
| A | Welcoming Child Refugees | Eliminated at second round |
| B | Human Rights and the Home Office | Not selected |
| Culture, Media and Sport | ||
| A | Nature of Public Debate During COVID-19 | Selected |
| B | Save the BBC | Selected |
| C | Liberal Vision for Technology | Not selected |
| Defence | ||
| A | Confronting Threats Real and Present | Not selected |
| Economy and Tax | ||
| A | Austerity is not the Answer | Not selected |
| B | Fairer Corporate Taxation | Not selected |
| C | Fairer Share – the Proportional Property Tax | Not selected |
| Education and Families | ||
| A | Accessibility in Higher Education | Eliminated at second round |
| B | Making Good Use of Apprenticeship Levy | Not selected |
| C | Study Credits for Community Gain | Not selected |
| Energy and Environment | ||
| A | Build Back Better – 2020 Vision | Not selected |
| B | A Green Recovery from the COVID-19 Pandemic | Selected |
| C | A Progressive Carbon Tax including Aviation to Reduce CO2 and Poverty | Not selected |
| D | A Green Recovery | Not selected |
| Equalities | ||
| A | Funding for Men’s Shelters | Not selected |
| B | No Justice, No Peace | Not selected |
| C | Racial Justice Cannot Wait | Selected |
| D | Racism and the Hostile Environment | Not selected |
| E | Tackling Racial Inequality through Education | Not selected |
| F | Right to Know – Equal Pay for Equal Work | Not selected |
| G | Protecting Women’s Employment in the COVID-19 Crisis | Eliminated at second round |
| Health and Social Care | ||
| A | Beveridge 2.0: Brighter Future for Health and Social Care | Not selected |
| B | Improve Mental Health Support for Health and Care Staff | Selected |
| International Affairs | ||
| A | Annexation under the Trump Plan | Eliminated at second round |
| B | Steps towards Peace between Palestine and Israel | Not selected |
| C | Towards a Peaceful Future for Palestine and Israel | Not selected |
| D | Hong Kong’s Future | Selected |
| E | International Development: FCDO, Coronavirus and SDGs | Eliminated at second round |
| Political and Constitutional Reform | ||
| A | Constitutional Convention | Not selected |
| B | Creation of a Federal United Kingdom | Selected |
| Work and Pensions | ||
| A | Increasing Working Age Benefits | Not selected |
| B | Taskforce of Universal Basic Income | Not selected |
| C | Universal Basic Income | Selected |
| Miscellaneous | ||
| A | Revised Policy Motion | Not selected |
| Business Motions | ||
| A | Membership Subscriptions and Federal Levy | Selected |
| B | Social Contract Vision and Purpose | Not selected |
| C | Supporting Trans and Non-Binary People in the Lib Dems | Selected |
| D | Electoral Pack for Future General Election | Not selected |
| Constitutional Amendment | ||
| A | Amendment of Section 18.5 of the Constitution | Not in order |