Seeing it from another perspective

Curiously, although I've worked with a great many Parliamentary and European Parliamentary selection committees over the years, I've never actually sat on one, and so I found myself in central London this morning, attending a training session for prospective selection committee members.

In target seats, we insist that all members of the selection committee are trained, but relax that requirement in seats with lesser prospects. Given the importance of choosing the best possible candidate, it is important that those making key decisions on behalf of the wider membership understand what their role is, what the potential pitfalls are, and how their actions can impact on potential applicants.

I found myself sitting amongst the group from Hounslow Borough, most of whom I had met before, and it was interesting to see how they handled the various exercises, as well as the thought processes applied. Their position is an interesting one, in that they have councillors in three different wards, yet only have four councillors in total (Hounslow wards all have three councillors like many London councils do). So, obviously, their priority is to ensure that they defend those seats and gain the balance of the seats in those three wards in 2010. However, they also form part of a potentially interesting London Assembly seat, London South West, which also includes the boroughs of Richmond upon Thames and Kingston, both of which have Liberal Democrat administrations.

What they need from their prospective Parliamentary candidates (Brentford and Isleworth and Feltham and Heston) are people who will work within the framework of that agenda, so their process must necessarily be designed to obtain two such candidates, and I wish them luck in their efforts to achieve that.

Our gallant trainer, Brian Orrell, had dragged himself from his sick bed to lead the group, and did an excellent job in guiding us through the session, answering our questions and encouraging participation from all of those present.

I'll certainly make use of the ideas discussed in my future work as a Returning Officer and would recommend the training to anyone who wants to gain a better understanding of how our selection process works.