The MU at Labour and Conservative Party Conferences

We made the decision not to have stands at this year’s party political conferences, partly due to uncertainty around COVID-19 restrictions, but also so that we could assist members financially as much as possible.

As an affiliated union, the MU took a delegation to the Labour Party Conference in Brighton, where we voted for important motions on Climate Change and Proportional Representation – the latter of which sadly did not pass. Our delegates also voted for rule changes that implement the EHRC’s recommendations following its report into antisemitism in the Labour Party.

Outside of the conference hall, meetings were held with Labour MPs including Shadow Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Jo Stevens, Alison McGovern, Kevin Brennan and Stephen Doughty.

The MU also hosted a Fix Streaming fringe event, which was very well attended and featured a panel including Tom Gray from the Broken Record campaign, Kevin Brennan MP and singer-songwriter Eliza Shaddad.

For the first time in a very long time, the MU also had a delegate voted onto the Labour Party’s National Executive Committee (NEC), and Head of Government Relations Isabelle Gutierrez will now attend those meetings on behalf of the union.

Discussing Fix Streaming campaign at the Conservative Party Conference

This week we also made a fleeting visit to the Conservative Party Conference in Manchester to talk to them about the Fix Streaming campaign. Following the positive DCMS Select Committee report, which recommended wholesale change to streaming royalties, it is vital to influence Conservative MPs and the Government to take these proposals forward.