Conference Agenda Oct 2021 PRINT - Flipbook - Page 41
H: INTERNATIONAL COORDINATOR
None received
I: EQUALITY & DIVERSITY COORDINATOR
Rashid Nix
[SOC Note: A report was received from Rashid Nix which
appeared to be the Equalities and Diversity Committee
Report not the Co-ordinator Report, and which is
therefore given as that report].
A07
EQUALITIES & DIVERSITY
COMMITTEE
Rashid Nix*
Motion text: To accept the following report
The Equalities and Diversity Committee (E&D Committee)
was inactive for around 3 years, this was mainly because
no candidates stood for election. In the summer of 2020,
this lack of candidates was discussed as a matter of grave
concern within many liberation groups within GPEW. Many
members who understood the seriousness of this situation
encouraged others to stand for election in October 2020;
the election results were announced and the five people
elected were: Hannah Clare, Karen Kruzycka, Carmen
Legarda, Rakesh Prashara, Teresa Ravenshaw.
The first E&D Committee meeting was on Saturday 24th
October at 11am. It was chaired by Rashid Nix, Equality
and Diversity Coordinator of GPEx as laid out in the GPEW
Constitution. The first committee meeting was very much a
getting to know you session which helped to establish the
group’s individual strengths and overall identity. The group
also agreed their Ways of Working together.
Group members shared their frustration at the length of
time it has taken for the GPEW to have a functional, duly
elected, E&D Committee. Some Committee members
shared their recollections of the national media calling
out the Green Party in 2015 for having a less diverse
membership than UKIP, as reported in the media.
Because the E&D Committee had not been functioning for
such a long time, the group members started to slowly
work out how the group was going to work constructively
alongside the GPEx E&D Coordinator as described by the
GPEW Constitution. Part of the issues arising was the
old fashioned language and terminology still present in
the GPEW Constitution – for example are “special interest
groups“ now what we call Liberation Groups? And are
“working groups “now what we call Policy Working
Groups?
The Committee decided to meet every 4 weeks either on
a Saturday morning or a Wednesday evening, in order
to maximise attendance as some members worked on
a Saturday morning and some members worked on a
Wednesday evening.
One of the first outputs of the E&D Committee was the
production of an Action Plan which was composed of the
election “promises” made by each of the members when
they stood as candidates. The first Action Plan for the E&D
Committee was agreed in January 2021. This Action Plan
has now been updated in April 2021 (see attached).
One of the first tasks of the E&D Committee was to identify
the various liberation groups with in the GPEW. Once the
liberation group was identified, screening was applied
according to the GPEW Constitution such as an up-todate constitution, the group holding annual elections for
committee membership. Once the liberation group could
prove these, they were invited to send a representative to
attend the E&D Committee and be a fully voting member of
the committee.
[SOC note: A section has been deleted as in conflict
with the Code of Conduct and potentially our legal
responsibilities to staff].
In May 2021, due to a contractual clause in his new
employment contract, Rakesh Prashara had to step down
from all his activities within the Green Party. This included
his membership of the E&D Committee.
In May 2021, a request came from Rob Buckman, COO
of GPEW, to meet with the E&D Committee to discuss a
draft Diversity Strategy for the GPEW. Prior to this he had
a constructive meeting with COO. A month later, in June
2021 another request came, this time from Mary Clegg,
CEO of GPEW, again to discuss a Diversity Plan of Action.
As far as we are aware, none of the recommendations
from the E&D Committee were taken on board when that
Diversity Action document was discussed during GPEx.
The fact that there are two Diversity Strategy documents
circulating within GPEW, one from the COO and the
other from the CEO of the GPEW, raised many questions
amongst the liberation groups. It is clear that the GPEW
leadership has collaboration issue when it comes to
diversity within the party and this raises more concerns for
the E&D Committee. The fact that the E&D Committee and
its advice is overlooked by GPEx also raised more concerns
across the liberation groups.
In July 2021, the E&D Committee was approached by
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