Green Party Conference 2012: Economic Democracy top of the agenda

31 August 2012

 

Economic Democracy Motion

 

‘Economic Democracy’ could be the watchword of the 2012 Green Party Conference. At a time when ordinary people are struggling, we have a government offering Austerity and an opposition offering Austerity 2.0. At the annual conference next weekend, the Green Party are presenting a coherent alternative for Britain’s economic future.

Economic Democracy presents a package of resilient and community-based measures to help prevent a repeat of the financial crisis. Four key remedies will produce greater transparency, decentralisation of economic power, and accountability from corporations.

1.       Accountability will improve by requiring companies to include employee-elected directors and independent directors on to their management board. Not being drive by the profit-motive, they will act to ensure that company policies are taken with the interests of employees and consumers at heart.

2.       Decision making can be decentralised and democratised by giving employees a majority stake in the management of their companies pension funds.

3.       Create a Green National Investment Bank out of one or more of the currently ‘nationalised’ banks to aid funding investment in green technologies, renewable, and energy efficiency programmes.  A Green Bank would serve its customers and not its owners.

4.       Economic decision making can be further localised by granting employees the legal right to buy out their companies and turn them into workers co-operatives. Buy outs would be funded by the Green National Investment Bank.

The proposals put forward by Howard Thorp, candidate for Campaigns Co-ordinator in the party’s current internal elections, are likely to be warmly received by the Green Party, who continue to place employment and fairness at the heart of its economic policy.

 

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