Friday, October 21, 2011

It's that time of year when a bureaucrat's thoughts turn to amending the Constitution...

Off to Cambridge tomorrow for East of England's Annual Conference (we don't have a Spring Conference, the only Region not to have one, as far as I know), where I get to chair the pre-lunch session, including presentations on the 2012 campaign (not available in Mid Suffolk) and diversity, a speech from Watford's city boss, Dorothy Thornhill, and the report of our MEP, Andrew Duff. This means that I don't have to work too hard, but come up with pithy introductions for each bit, and maybe control a few questioners.

We then have the entertaining prospect of Ros chairing the session where I torture the Regional Constitution a bit more - I'm hoping to move to a two-year cycle for elections, and free up our Parliamentarians and Youth to select their representatives by a method of their choosing at a time of their choosing. I'm hoping that she'll be kind to me, as it's my first speech to Conference.

We also get a new Regional Chair, and I'll be intrigued to see who it is, albeit not intrigued enough to serve on their Executive Committee. As a result, I get to work with our Returning Officer to deal with the fallout from the nomination process. It seems fair enough, especially as I wrote the briefing notes for him, as well as the election rules.

And with only one meeting of the Regional Executive to go, I can quietly slip away into the evening, playing Butch Cassidy to Ros's Sundance Kid... or something like that. It will make life a little more peaceful...

1 comment:

Nigel Ashton said...

You are no doubt aware that your English Council reps have to be elected annually - see clause 5.1(b) of the Constitution of the Liberal Democrats in England.