84 CLPs in 24 months on the NEC

Johanna has visited a phenomenal 84 Constituency Labour Parties in the 24 months she’s been on the NEC. Here she reflects on her first 2 years on Labour’s NEC and why she’ll keep #puttingmembersfirst

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Party Conference

Like many party members, Johanna attended this year’s party conference in Manchester. Below is footage of Johanna moving the Health Policy Report.

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A message from Johanna: Thank you!

I am deeply honoured and privileged to be re-elected to Labour’s NEC, representing our members in the CLP section.  I stood for election this time, as I did last time, because I believe that Labour Party members are not ordinary – you are extraordinary.  As members and activists – the advocates of our democratic socialist values – you deserve a bigger voice.

I want to thank every one of the 20,146 members who voted for me.  Thanks also to every CLP Secretary who has, despite being deluged with NEC e-mails, been kind enough to circulate my election material, and all the members of my team who have had a key role in spreading the word and for all your messages of support.  Those messages have sustained me throughout the campaign and have truly humbled and inspired me.

I am proud of my record and the honest, positive, energetic grassroots campaign that we have run.

• I have visited 73 CLPs across the every region in country, talking to members about rebuilding our party, our policy making process and listening to their ideas for change.  That level of engagement set a new record.
• I have tried to speak to every CLP Secretary personally over recent months (though with 600+ it was a huge challenge, so apologies if you were one of the few that I didn’t quite reach!)
• I secured 172 CLP nominations – that’s nearly three times the number of nominations I received at the last election and, incredibly, it was 19 times the average number of nominations received by other independent candidates.
• I secured the endorsement of a number of senior figures in the party including: Shadow Business Secretary Chuka Umunna MP; Shadow Treasury Minister Chris Leslie MP; Shadow Food & Farming Minister Huw Irranca-Davies MP; Labour’s Leader in the House of Lords Jan Royall; Lord Jim Knight and Lord Jack McConnell.
• My team led the way in reaching out to members through innovative campaigning using every medium possible, including social media.

I have always tried to work hard on your behalf – to put you first – and I will continue to do so.  I’m your advocate, and as your only independent representative on the NEC I’m answerable only to you.  I want to hear your views and I will continue to proactively seek them in every way I can.

We already made a difference to how our party is run – members have responded positively to the new methods of engagement I’ve tried to introduce and we have fundamentally changed the capability of many CLPs through the new funding mechanism I fought for. More people than ever now know what the NEC is and what we’re up to because of the work we have done, and all that is good for our internal democracy.

Let’s continue to make a difference in the next term!

With grateful thanks,

Johanna