On 11 September, at a Special General Meeting of the European Movement, members voted to enact significant changes to its constitution. These changes give members and local campaigners a greater say in its future direction and increase diversity.
Specific changes include:
- Creating a 100-strong National Council, made up of members and campaigners and led by the Chair of the Movement, Lord Andrew Adonis, to direct our campaign
- Giving our 13,000 members the power to directly elect the future Chair and Vice Chairs of the European Movement
- Measures to ensure gender balance in the Council and to increase the representation of young people and people from Black and minority ethnic communities
- Increased representation from Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland on the Council and the Executive Committee
- A diversity statement enshrined in the constitution and the creation of a Diversity Officer role on the National Executive, to guide our work to increase diversity across the Movement
- Provisions for electronic voting and hybrid meetings, to encourage participation and inclusivity
Responding to the changes, European Movement Chair Lord Andrew Adonis said:
“This is a transformational moment for the European Movement. The new 100-strong council will spearhead our campaigning step by step to rejoin the EU. It gives unprecedented opportunities for European Movement members to participate in our leadership and it promotes diversity as a core value. The European Movement needs to reflect society at large if it is to succeed.”
Anna Bird, Chief Executive, said:
“The European Movement is rapidly growing into a mass movement. We’ve doubled our membership in the past year and are building powerful partnerships with media and civil society organisations to get our message heard. These reforms are the next step in that transformation. I’m delighted that on Saturday our members - by an overwhelming majority – voted in favour of bold reforms which give a stronger voice to our passionate grassroots campaigners and promote our diversity.”
Members of the European Movement can see the new constitution by clicking here.