The Co-operative Party

I am a Labour AND Co-operative MP for Loughborough. This means I am a member of the Co-operative party as well and was elected as such. I know most people have never really understood this so hopefully the links below will help you understand what the Co-operative Party is all about.

The Co-operative Party is a registered political party founded by the Co-operative Movement in 1917 in order to promote its values and principles. It enjoys total freedom in determining policy, disseminating information and in the organisation of its electoral machine.

The Party is governed by a National Executive Committee consisting of 18 members. This committee is made up of the one representative elected from contributing Societies in 11 regions; 1 representative from the Board of Co-operatives UK; 1 representative from the Co-operative Group, 2 representatives of the Co-operative Party Parliamentary Group; 1 youth member; and 2 members (1 man and 1 woman) elected by one member vote from the Party membership.
The National Executive Committee administers the affairs of the Party.

The Party's membership is of two kinds, individual and affiliated members [the co-operative societies]. Individual and affiliated members' fees fund the Party. The Co-operative covers the whole of the UK with the exception of Northern Ireland.

Parliamentary representation

The Co-operative Party has representation in:

The House of Commons
The House of Lords
The National Assembly for Wales
The Greater London Assembly
The Scottish Parliament
Local Government