, L Stevens (non-member)

The meeting was called to order at 13:09.

1. Election of Chair

Motion 1 (White & Chesham) That Stair be chair.
Agreed

2. Minutes of the previous meeting, business arising therefrom and the
General Secretary's rising of Notices of Motion and Business from
previous meetings
a. Amendment of the 6 October 2007 meeting minutes

Motion 2 (Chesham & Miller) That in Motion 23 of the
6 October 2007 minutes, "in which is" be replaced with "which
has".
Agreed

Motion 3 (Chesham & Miller) That in §3(a) of the 6 October
2007 minutes, "havy" be replaced with "have any".
Agreed

Motion 4 (Helps & Deutz) That in §6(e) of the 6 October 2007
minutes, "several" be replaced with "two (Helps and Stair)".
Agreed

b. Adoption of the 6 October 2007 meeting minutes

Motion 5 (Deutz & Helps) That the minutes of 6 October 2007
as amended be adopted.
Agreed

Easton arrived at this point.

c. Amendment of the 20 October 2007 meeting minutes

Motion 6 (Deutz & Miller) That the wording of the Birmingham
resolution and voting figures be inserted at the beginning of
§3 of the 20 October 2007 minutes:

That Birmingham Branch support the poll requisition from
West London Branch (8 August): "That a poll of the Party be
called in accordance with Rule 26 to revoke Resolution 9 of
the meeting of the EC of 4 August charging Comrade Martin
[confirmation of Resolution 24 of the 7 July EC meeting]
and to refer the matter to West London Branch." (7-0)

Agreed

Motion 7 (Miller & Chesham) That in Motion 2 of the
20 October 2007 minutes, the word "elected" be deleted.
Agreed

d. Adoption of the 20 October 2007 meeting minutes

Motion 8 (Chesham & Helps) That the minutes of 20 October
2007 as amended be adopted.
Agreed

e. Matters arising from the 2 June 2007 meeting
i. Re Motion 16 (Conference resolution implementation)
A. Letter from the Treasurer (29 September) asking for
further volunteers to operate the new bank account.

Motion 9 (Chesham & Helps) That the report of the
Treasurer be approved and that Cdes Stair, White, and
Deutz be appointed as cosignatories to operate the HSBC
bank account.
Carried 8-0

f. Matters arising from the 7 July 2007 meeting
i. Re Motion 26 of 7 July and Motion 10 of 1 September (image
credits in the Standard)

Agreed to defer pending a further report from the Assistant
Secretary.
ii. Re Motion 33 (Campaigns Department posters): See §6(a)
g. Matters arising from the 4 August 2007 meeting
i. Re Motion 19 (Library Department nominations)
A. Letter from West London Branch and S Wigley
(29 September)

Motion 10 (Deutz & Easton) That Wigley be appointed
to the Library Department.

For: Deutz. Against: White, Stair, Chesham.
Abstaining: Carter, Miller, Easton, Helps.
Failed 1-3-4

h. Matters arising from the 1 September 2007 meeting
i. Re Motion 13 (solicitation of support from members not
present at Branch meetings)
A. E-mail from Central Organiser with attachments
(30 September) arguing that in refusing to accept the
first Birmingham Branch poll requisition, the EC was
misinterpreting Party practice and opinion.

Motion 11 (Miller & White) That Cde Easton be asked
to furnish a reply to the Central Organiser in
accordance with the facts.
Carried 5-0-3

B. Letter from Central London Branch (29 October)
containing the following resolution:

Be it resolved that Central London Branch urges the
EC to draft a set of uniform standing orders for
online Branch meetings and that they present same
to Conference for adoption. (3-1-1)

Motion 12 (Carter & Easton) That this EC thanks the
three members, Buick, McEwan, and Miller, for their
present involvement into the investigation of Standing
Orders for online Branch activities and requests that
they submit their conclusions to the January 2008 EC
meeting.
Carried 7-0-1

ii. Re Motion 16 (Form A for C. W.): Letter from David Porter,
Membership Department (25 September) indicating that
B Malcolm wished to be a member of the Department this
year, and giving further details regarding the applications
from C. W. and A. S.

Motion 13 (White & Miller) That the EC write to the
Membership Department referring to recent applications and
stressing the importance of properly scrutinising
candidates' understanding and acceptance of the Party case.
Carried 6-0-2

Motion 14 (Carter & Helps) That the EC appoint Ben
Malcolm to the Membership Department.
Carried 4-1-3

iii. Re Motion 27 (roof hatch security)

Stair (Premises Committee) said that in the interests of
fire safety Head Office needs a roof hatch which is easy to
open and hold open, and in the interests of security which
automatically locks when closed. He presented the meeting
with a quote for 2995 for a new hatch and ladder.

As many EC members expressed the view that it was not
necessary to replace the existing ladder, it was agreed
that the Premises Committee would accept further
recommendations from knowledgeable comrades.

i. Matters arising from the 6 October 2007 meeting
i. Re 2.d.i (payment to John Briggs for services re the
Pooley Estate)
A. Letter from Treasurer (24 October) requesting a
clarification of the 6 October 2007 EC minutes.

Motion 15 (Miller & Chesham) That it be noted that
the statement of Stair in the 6 October 2007 minutes,
"Stair said that the Ad-hoc Committee and/or Treasurer
had been advised not to contact Briggs to offer to
pay," was his personal interpretation of events and
not necessarily the view of the EC as a whole.
Carried 8-0

ii. Re 2.f.i.A and 2.h.i.B (East Anglian Regional Branch
resolutions regarding the charge against M Martin and the
poll requisition from West London Branch)
A. Letter from Central London Branch (29 October)
containing the following resolution:

Be it resolved that Central London Branch supports
the East Anglian Regional Branch resolutions of 22
September. (4-0-1)

Motion 16 (Deutz & Helps) That Central London
Branch's resolution be noted.
Agreed

j. Matters arising from the 20 October 2007 meeting
i. Re Motion 2 (Party poll): dates for mailout and return of
ballot papers

Motion 17 (Deutz & Chesham) That the Ballot Committe
proceed today, 3 November 2007, with the Party poll as per
Rule 26, the returning date to be 1 December 2007.
Carried 7-1

k. Notices of Motion and Business
* None received.

3. Forms A and F
a. Form A for John Shade

Motion 18 (Deutz & Miller) That the Form A for John Shade be
accepted.
Agreed

b. Forms F for Pat and Phil Bentley (Central Branch, lapsed)

Motion 19 (Chesham & Deutz) That the Forms F be accepted with
reluctance.
Carried 7-1

4. Written report of the General Purposes Committee
* Committee vacant.

5. Accounts
a. Accounts for April-June 2007

Motion 20 (Deutz & Easton) That the accounts be noted.
Agreed

6. Reports of Party Officers, Party Appointees, Subcommittees, and
Departments; discussion of campaigns and The Socialist Standard
a. Reports from the Campaigns Department (August, September,
October 2007)

Motion 21 (Miller & Helps) That the reports be noted.
Carried 7-0

It was agreed that the Campaigns Department would submit a
detailed proposal and budget for various promotional items.

Motion 22 (Easton & Miller) That the EC approves the speakers
Deutz, and Pitts or Johnson, for the upcoming debates.
Carried 8-0

b. Report from the Assistant Secretary

The report summarised the events surrounding the Party poll,
noted that Birmingham Branch had renamed itself West Midland
Regional Branch, and confirmed that the Head Office electronic
display had been repaired for 45. The Head Office burglary
cases had been closed by the police due to lack of evidence.
Finally, several antique disused computers from Head Office
were being refurbished.

It was agreed that anyone interested in taking the computers
should contact Head Office.

c. Discussion of campaigns
d. Report from the Socialist Standard Department

The report recommending that as of January 2008, the
subscription rates for the Socialist Standard be increased from
£12 (normal), £7 (unwaged), £15 (Europe), and £22 (rest of
world) to £15, £10, £20, and £25, respectively. The report
indicated that the Department could investigate the possibility
of increasing the Branch discount so that Branches could
continue to sell the journal for £1.

Motion 23 (Miller & Deutz) That the Socialist Standard prices
be increased as per the Department's report.
Carried 8-0

Motion 24 (Miller & Deutz) That the Socialist Standard
Department be asked to report to the December 2007 EC meeting
on the question of increasing the Branch discount.
Carried 8-0

e. Discussion of the Socialist Standard

7. Correspondence
a. Matters of urgency
b. Correspondence from or concerning Branches, the Party in
general, and members
i. Letter from Central Branch Secretary (2 July)
A. Overseas Contacts Committee and Overseas Group
Secretary

Motion 25 (Helps & Deutz) That B Johnson be appointed
to the Overseas Contacts Committee.
Carried 8-0

Motion 26 (Helps & Deutz) That B Johnson be appointed
Overseas Group Secretary.
Carried 8-0

B. Correspondence with Zambia group and associated
correspondence from P Newell on the subject of the
Party's attitude towards religion (23 July and
4 September)

Motion 27 (Carter & Chesham) That Cde Johnson be
asked to write to Cde Mulenga for clarification on his
use of "MHSRIP" at the end of his letter.
Agreed
8-0

Motion 28 (White & Miller) That Cde Johnson also
contact the other six members of Central Branch who,
according to him, "need clarification of the Party
case".
Carried 6-0-2

ii. E-mail from Central Branch Secretary regarding Central
Branch Standing Orders (5 September)

Motion 29 (Miller & Easton) That the Central Branch
Secretary be encouraged to draft a set of standing orders
for Central Branch and to present same to the January 2008
EC meeting.
Carried 7-0-1

iii. Letter from Central Organiser regarding the formation of
the South West Regional Branch (19 September)

Motion 30 (Miller & Chesham) That South West Regional
Branch be constituted under the terms of Rule 7.
Carried 8-0

iv. E-mail from West London Branch (29 September 21:18):

All members present at our 18 September branch meeting
asked me to raise with you the question of suitable
facilities for smokers, or the lack of them, at Head
Office. So far as we are aware, there is presently no
sheltered, insulated and heated area at the rear of the
premises of a kind mushrooming around the country since
New Labour's benevolent apartheid legislation. We
assume that the Premises Committee has a construction
in mind and that this will take priority over any
non-essential work on their list of desiderata, given
the approach of winter. Such a facility need not
require a great deal of work by members, since there
are plenty of purpose-built structures that comply with
government guidelines. We believe it would be politic
if any final decision on suitability took into account
the views of some of "the unclean", rather than being
made exclusively by the unpolluted.

Motion 31 (Miller & Deutz) That West London Branch be
referred to Motion 14 of the September EC minutes ["Be it
resolved that this EC affrims that the Party's
infrastructure is for the propagation of socialism and the
administration of the Party."] and be asked to justify the
expense of erecting a facility at Head Office for the
purely recreational use of a minority of members.
Carried 8-0

v. E-mail from West London Branch (28 October) containing the
following resolution:

We understand that someone has intercepted and
circulated unpublished material sent by West London
Branch to the Standing Orders Committee on at least one
occasion. If this is so, it is outside the remit of the
person concerned and out of order, and the EC must
ensure that it does not happen in future. (7-0-1)

Motion 32 (Miller & Easton) That West London Branch be
informed that, except for the membership database, the
Party has no secret documents, and especially not those of
which Branches had specifically requested publication.
Carried 7-1

vi. Letter from P Lancaster (7 October) asking for confirmation
that Miller's visit would continue to be periodically
reviewed.

The Assistant Secretary reported that he had responded in
the affirmative on 29 October.

Motion 33 (Carter & ?) That the action of the Assistant
Secretary in relation to this matter be endorsed.
Agreed

vii. Form C from Birmingham Branch

Agreed to note.

c. Correspondence from Companion Parties and Groups

It was agreed to note the following correspondence:
* WSPNZ minutes for June 2007
* WSPNZ minutes for July 2007
* WSPNZ minutes for August 2007
* WSPNZ minutes for September 2007
* SPC newsletter for July 2007
* SPC newsletter for August 2007
* SPC newsletter for September 2007
* SPC newsletter for October 2007
* WSG(I) minutes for July 2007
d. All other correspondence
i. E-mail from J Bissett giving advice on and volunteering to
help with Party videos (30 August) and retraction of offer
(3 November)

Agreed to note.

8. Any other business
a. Insurance on Head Office contents

Motion 34 (Helps & White) That the EC instruct the Trustees
to look into the question of contents insurance for Head
Office, given the recent spate of burglaries.
Carried 8-0

b. Ecology pamphlet

The Publications Department reported that they hoped to place a
new draft of the pamphlet before the next EC meeting.

c. Conference 2007 proceedings

It was asked whether or when the full proceedings of the 2007
Conference would be available. The Assistant Secretary replied
that only the General Secretary had taken any notes, but that
he had since resigned.

d. Easton gave apologies for absence next month.

e. World of Free Access scam

Miller reported that John Bissett had alerted the Party to a
scammer soliciting funds in the name of the World of Free
Access in Gambia. The scammer had no connection to the WFA but
was using the Internet to solicit funds ostensibly on their
behalf; his messages used religious and reformist language.

It was agreed to warn the WFA and others about the scam.

f. Call for nominations for EC and Party Officers, and call for
and Conference items

It was agreed to issue a call for nominations for the Executive
Committee and for elected Party Officers, to be received before
the next EC meeting on 1 December 2007. It was agreed to issue
a first call for submissions to the 2008 Conference, to be
received before the January EC meeting on 5 January 2007.

9. Nomination of Chair for the next meeting

It was agreed that Helps would be Chair.

With no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned at
19:13.

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