Our National Committee member David Levy successfully passed this motion at his GMB union branch where they agreed to send it to their annual Congress as part of GMB’s policy making process. His branch also voted to affiliate to Another Europe is Possible. We encourage you to take the motion below to your branches as well, although you may need to amend the wording to reflect your specific trade union structures.
Congress notes that Brexit is not a one-off event but an ongoing process, and how it unfolds will determine all of our futures. The people who led the Leave campaign are now running the country, and theirs is an agenda of economic deregulation, racist scapegoating and border-building.
Congress notes the Future Trade and Cooperation agreement with the European Union and notes the many disadvantages to external and internal UK Trade caused by the Tory Government’s hard Brexit.
We anticipate the review conference in 2024 and call on the Government to consider the following changes to current policy in the short term:
1. To agree a pan-European visa scheme for creative workers, such as actors and musicians
2. To re-join Erasmus+, the EU’s student academic exchange scheme, to allow our members and their children access to European Universities and allow European students access to UK Universities, ensuring that the community of peoples continues
3. To re-join Horizon Europe, the EU R&D programme to minimise the disruption to our industrial innovation
4. To negotiate, a common reciprocal voting rights agreement to permit EU Citizens in the UK and British Citizens in the EU voting rights.
5. To negotiate changes to Northern Ireland Protocol that eases intra-UK trade, complies with the Good Friday Agreement and maintains the Common Travel Area.
Congress instructs the CEC and the political department to liaise with the Parliamentary Labour Party GMB Group, and the Labour shadow front bench to plan and execute a campaign in Parliament to further these aims and for the next Labour Govt to adopt appropriate reforms.
22nd January 2022