Our Annual Conference, 1949
During the warm pleasant Easter week-end, from the morning of Good Friday to the evening of Easter Sunday, many members of our Party shut themselves away from the enticing sunshine, inside the Conway Hall, London, to review the work of the past year and to plan for future activities. The size of our Conference delegation increases each year, denoting the steady growth of our organisation. This year we can again report a record number of delegates attending, seventy-four delegates representing twenty-five branches. Compared with last year this is an increase of eleven delegates, whilst two additional branches were represented. During the afternoon of the first day of the conference, approximately 150 visitors listened to the discussion.
Our conferences are different from those of other political organisations. We have no fiery oratory delivered from the platform, no rhetorical speeches from party officers followed by prolonged applause from the delegates. We do not receive an address of welcome from the Mayor of Holborn, neither do we witness a general exodus to the bar when one of our less eloquent comrades rises to speak. At our conferences the “platform” does not monopolise the discussion or dominate the conference and the chairman guides the proceedings but does not rule them.
The Conference commenced at eleven o’clock on Good Friday morning with the election of the chairman, a post which is held by the member elected for the duration of the conference only, or even for a shorter period if the delegates decide to remove him from the office. With this and other routine business done, the delegates settled down to discuss the varied items on the agenda.
Practically the whole of the first day was taken up by discussion on matters of discipline, what activities constitute action detrimental to the interests of the Party and how best the Party can protect itself from such action. At the end of the day the chairman read messages of greeting from Eire, Austria, New Zealand, Australia and South Africa.
The first bone of contention on the second day was the full-time propagandist-organiser proposal. The resolution that was finally carried denoted the delegates’ desire to see the post filled, without limitation to the area of operation, but it also denoted their anxiety to be assured that only a suitable candidate would be appointed. Then followed a determined discussion on the advisability, or otherwise, of continuing the practice of requiring intending Party speakers to submit themselves to a test of their ability to represent the Party on a public platform. Some wanted the test to be conducted by the branches instead of by a central committee whilst others wanted to increase the scope of the present speakers’ test committee. Resolutions to change the existing machinery were defeated.
Considerable discussion centred around ways and means for improving the SOCIALIST STANDARD and for increasing the sales. The Editorial committee reported that despite the growth of the Party, the number of writers of suitable articles was less than in pre-war days. The General Secretary pointed that the recent increase in the size of the SOCIALIST STANDARD to sixteen pages resulted in a loss of £14 per month falling on Head Office funds. It was not considered advisable for the Conference to discuss any variation in the price of our journal, that matter being deferred to the Autumn Delegate Meeting, pending a financial report to the branches. It was resolved to revert to the old, more readable type of print that was used before the war. It was further decided to publish certain articles that appear in the SOCIALIST STANDARD in the form of two-page leaflets. Many methods for improving the circulation of our journal were proposed. Although the monthly circulation had increased considerably during the past year, it was still far from satisfactory. Many delegates considered that the matter of the sale of the paper was bound up with the quality of the contents and, in consequence, we should get down to schemes for improving the standard of writing and multiplying the number of our contributors.
A number of amendments to rules were included in the agenda, including some to increase the weekly dues paid by members, to amend the present system of paying these dues and set up a special contributory system for our Parliamentary Fund, All amendments to rules were defeated with the exception of one which demands that a member of the Executive Committee who is absent for three consecutive weeks without having been granted leave, shall be lapsed from that post, and shall certainly be lapsed if absent for six meetings in any one quarter.
The third day opened with a discussion on press advertising and other publicity. The most interesting factor that emerged was the decision to institute a new department, a National Press Office, and to appoint a representative to the post.
Resolutions to allow membership to Socialists living permanently in other lands were defeated on the grounds that such individuals could not in any way assist in the task of capturing the political machinery of Great Britain and that the Party could not control the activities of people outside Great Britain. It was decided to retain the existing method of contact with Socialists abroad.
The discussion on electoral activity showed clearly that the majority of the branches are in favour of such activity being pushed forward. It was agreed by a large majority that both North Paddington and East Ham, South, shall be contested at the next General Election. The major part of the discussion on this item centred around the best means of allocating Party funds for the Parliamentary contests.
A comrade from the Dublin Socialist Group addressed the Conference and told the delegates of the problems facing the group in Eire. The ardent Catholicism of Irish workers made Socialist propaganda difficult and, at times, dangerous.
Resolutions to change the name of the Party to indicate more clearly its internationalist character were lost, as it was not generally considered that they would serve the purpose for which they were proposed. A scheme to allow Central Branch members to be represented at Conferences and Delegate meetings is to be investigated. The Executive Committee is instructed to inquire into the possibility of a number of new projects such as the setting up of a Research Bureau, a new educational system within the Party and the establishment of a summer week-end school.
Many other matters were argued around, such as the powers of the Standing Orders Committee, the extension of Delegate meetings from one to two days, the advisability of allowing the Executive Committee to place resolutions on the Conference Agenda, etc. It will be observed that our Conference is a meeting of representatives from our branches to hammer out the most suitable means for improving our organisation and making our activities most effective. We do not have to annually re-arrange a programme or consider what shall be our attitude to various working class problems. We do not spend our time deciding what will be the best bait to use at the next election period, and so on. We have a clearly-defined object and our members know how it is to be achieved, so a conference for us is a means of exchanging views and making decisions how to speed the achievement of the objective.
One of the most pleasing factors at the Conference was the high level of the contributions to the discussions and the fact that nearly every delegate got to his feet to have his say on one subject or another. There was no monopoly of discussion by a few stalwarts.
The Saturday evening Social and Dance was a greater success than ever, if one is to judge by the large number present and the expression on their faces. Likewise the Sunday evening rally, although the warm spring evening kept many out in the parks and open spaces, was well attended and the collection taken up was a surprisingly large help towards defraying the expenses of the period. So we embark on another year of Socialist activity with a determination to be able to say in our next conference report, “It was our best yet.”
W. WATERS