Rt Hon Ed Miliband MP, Minister for the Cabinet Office and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster

- Check Against Delivery -

It's a privilege to be opening this debate.

And to be speaking for the first time at Labour Conference

But it's not the first time a Miliband has spoken at Conference

And I am not talking about my brother David

My Dad Ralph was a delegate in 1955.

As often happens, he felt his speech was cut short.

When I told Gordon this recently, he said I should just carry on where my Dad left off.

What I didn't tell Gordon is that my Dad's speech was calling for the nationalisation of the means of production and the commanding heights of the economy.

Conference, the politics of my father's generation were different from mine.

But what my upbringing gave me was the belief that getting angry at injustice isn't enough.

You have to try and do something about it.

That's why I joined this party in the 1980s, when I was a teenager.

It's why I am proud of how we have changed the country in the last ten years.

Two and a half million more jobs,

Six hundred thousand children out of poverty

Sure Start,

Strong public services

It didn't happen by accident, it happened because people in this hall campaigned and made it happen.

It's a record we should all be proud of.

It's a record the Tories could never have matched....

And it's a record we must never let them destroy.

But today's debate is not about the past it is about the future.

How we change the country in the years to come.

And to do this we need a stronger party ---

With more members,

Reaching out to the community

And showing people we have a vision for the future.

Let's be honest, our party structures don't help

We all know the problems....

Too often the leadership gives the impression that members are only there to deliver leaflets and not shape the party's ideas.

That needs to change

Too often, consultation with our local parties consists of a long policy document that nobody will read.

That needs to change as well.

Too often party democracy starts with a branch passing a resolution to save the world and ends up with them trying to save a sentence in the compositing meeting on Sunday night.

That needs to change too.

And too often the way we do things puts people off.

We've all been there, we all know the excitement when a new member arrives at a branch meeting, and we've all felt that sinking sense at the end of the evening when we know they probably won't return.

All this needs to change

And the point of these reforms is to make a start:

To build a party that is fit to change our country through dialogue, debate and decision involving every member.

So local parties will get more support to hold their own discussions on policy and be able to invite in people from the community who can help.

Every member will be invited to a regional policy forum with ministers

Every member who takes part will now be kept informed as policy develops.

And now there will be one member one vote
Not just for selecting candidates
Or electing the leader

But one member one vote on the programme they will stand on.

We also need better links between members and Conference

And Conference and the policy forum.

Conference is now and always will be the place where our party comes together to debate the big issues - as it should be.

And under these reforms, the debates at Conference will not just take place for four days and then disappear.

They will shape the work of our policy-making throughout the year.

Let's take three issues that trade unions and local parties have raised as priorities at this years Conference:

Equalities, agency workers and manufacturing.

Under the proposed changes debate at Conference would not be the end of the matter but the start of serious work.

The national policy forum with ministers, trade unions and CLPs will get down to business on the detail and thrash out the tough questions.


For the first time, the people who moved the motion, delegates at this Conference, will be part of the discussions

And it's not about sweeping difficult issues under the carpet because after a year, if conference isn't happy it can send the issue back.

What do these reforms mean for the role of the trade unions?

Let me be absolutely clear.

We need the voice of working people in this movement.

Think about the minimum wage,

The end of the two-tier workforce

And after the appalling tragedy at Morecambe Bay, the legislation to crack down on abuse by gangmasters.

All demanded by the trade unions.

All delivered by the partnership between the Labour Party and trade union movement.

And that takes me to the next challenge:
How we engage people beyond our membership.

Political change, whether it is local, national or international, doesn't happen because of politicians or political parties alone.

Debt relief for the world's poorest countries happened because we campaigned and reached out beyond our party.

And if we think about the coming years, we need a Labour Party that can reach out again, changing minds and attitudes on issues from child poverty to climate change.

And we need to recognise that real change in communities only comes when people are part of it.

Whether it is a new zebra crossing, getting drug dealers off the streets, or better youth services, we can only do it by being rooted in communities we serve.

As a local MP I say to people: I can't solve the problems on my own

I need your help.

So local Labour parties need to be --- as many already are---community organisations showing people the difference we can make by working together.

And there will be new support for local parties to do that.

And that's how we will recruit new members and build a stronger party.

So the mechanics of these reforms are important.

But something else matters more.

Idealism

People will join our party again if they are inspired by our ideals.

I have been given the privilege of co-ordinating the manifesto.

Again I can't do it on my own.
I need your help.

And by working together, starting this week, we can create a manifesto that speaks to people's lives and inspires them about our vision for the future.

Relevant to them by talking about the issues politics often doesn't confront - carers, mental health, services for young people.

And inspiring them by showing that year on year Labour can transform our country.

In his speech fifty two years ago, my Dad said we were a party "engaged in a great adventure and we have a vision that the Tories never had and never will have."

That is as true today as it was then.

Twenty years since I joined this party, ten years in government and I tell this Conference: I am more idealistic than ever.

We are the people with ideals ---not just a government but a cause

We are the people connected to our communities- not just a party but a movement

We are the people who can transform our country --volunteers at elections and campaigners for change

Today, let's renew our party,

This week let's spell out our ideals

And then let's build a country equal to our hopes.