Resources

Aims and Values

Labour Rule Book, Clause IV (Section 1)

The Labour Party is a democratic socialist Party. It believes that by the strength of our common endeavour we achieve more than we achieve alone, so as to create for each of us the means to realise our true potential and for all of us a community in which power, wealth and opportunity are in the hands of the many not the few; where the rights we enjoy reflect the duties we owe and where we live together freely, in a spirit of solidarity, tolerance and respect.

The Labour Party Rule Book 2026.

Member’s Pledge

Every member agrees to the following on joining the Party:

I pledge to act within the spirit and rules of the Labour Party in my conduct both on and offline, with members and non-members and I stand against all forms of abuse.

I commit to treating all those I encounter with respect and courtesy whether or not they are in the Labour Party or a member of the public.

Whilst I am at Labour Party meetings, on the doorstep, in a campaigning environment, on social media or in any Labour Party gathering, I will:

• Listen to others’ viewpoints, participate inclusively, challenge appropriately.
• Conduct reasoned arguments and not talk over others.
• Use constructive criticism consistent with Labour’s values.
• Always act in an appropriate and respectful manner to others.
• Take care to use appropriate, non-offensive language.
• Finally, I will not organise to drown out the views of others recognising the unfairness this creates.

By following this Code, I will help to ensure an inclusive, safe and constructive environment within the Labour Party.

I understand that if found to be in breach of the Labour Party’s codes of conduct, guidelines, policies and procedures on online and offline abuse, and if I fail to treat those I encounter with respect and courtesy, I will be subject to, and may be sanctioned in accordance with, the rules and procedures of the Labour Party.

Labour Jargon

We all know the Labour Party loves a few acronyms and a bit of jargon. In this section we aim to help you understand some of the jargon and if you wish to  help out more, there are training and campaigning links.

Affiliate
Trade union or socialist society with established formal links with the Labour Party based on common values. Affiliated organisations pay a subscription to the Labour Party on behalf of their members.

AGM
Annual General Meeting. Usually held in Guildford Institute.  The Executive Officers are elected in this meeting.

AMM
All Member Meeting. Meeting of the Constituency Labour Party open to all members in that constituency.

AWS
All Women Shortlist. Process to increase representation of women in Parliament by reserving 50% of winnable seats for women candidates.

BAME
BAME stands for Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic.

Back Bencher
A Minister of Parliament (MP) or a councillor with no front bench responsibility.

Cabinet
Committee of senior government ministers/shadow ministers. Also the main decision making body of a Council consisting of the Leader/elected Mayor & councillors with portfolio responsibilities.

CAC
Conference Arrangements Committee. The committee that determines the shape of the agenda for Annual Conference, and rules on the validity of contemporary and emergency motions. Acts as the steering committee for Annual Conference. People are elected to the CAC by members periodically.

Canvassing
Also called “door knocking”.  This is a doorstep conversation with a voter; the gold standard of election campaigning. Here we find out the things that are important to voters and encourage our supporters to get out to vote.

CLP (& BLP)
Constituency Labour Party (and Branch Labour Party). A CLP covers the electoral area of an MP. Frequently CLPs are divided into BLPs, based on ward boundaries for the election of councillors. A branch comprises several wards and much of member’s activities take place at branch level. Guildford CLP is not divided into BLPs and therefore all members of Guildford CLP are able to participate in activities at the CLP level.

EC
The Executive Committee is elected by members every year at the AGM. Any paid-up member of the constituency of more than eight weeks standing may put themselves forward for election to the committee (there are additional rules that vary according to the position applied for). The EC deals with the day to day running of the CLP.

GM
General Meeting. The General Meeting is where decisions are made for the whole constituency.

GOTV
Get Out The Vote. You’ll hear a lot about this around election time. Throughout a campaign we identify Labour voters (through canvassing). We then encourage them to go and cast their vote on polling day.

GOTPV
Get Out The Postal Vote.

Labour Group
The group of Labour councillors on Guildford Council or Surrey County Council.

NEC
National Executive Committee. Find out more here Labour’s National Executive Committee.

NPF
National Policy Forum. Find out more here Labour’s National Policy Forum.

PLP
Parliamentary Labour Party. The group of all sitting Labour MPs.

Quotas
Policy to ensure gender balance. For example, at least 50% of CLP delegates to the GC, EC and Labour Party conference must be women.

Registered Supporter
A supporter who pays for a vote in the leadership contest; this expires a year after the date you joined unless you re-join as an Affiliated Supporter or full Member. You can re-join here.

Short Campaign
A period of time before election day during which all details of expenditure must be sent to the candidate for inclusion in their records.

TULO
Trade Union Liaison Officer. A CLP or BLP officer elected to build links with local trade unions and lead local Labour Party campaigns supporting local trade unions.

Ward
The basic geographical building block of the your local authority and the Labour Party.

Young Member
If you are under 27 you are automatically a member of Young Labour.