Sue Blackwell from Labour International raised a point of order about international matters being squeezed off the agenda. She said there should have been an opportunity for open discussion after Ed Miliband’s speech.
She is right and party rules do provide for exactly that, in fact, mandate it. Carshalton and Wallington CLP had submitted a reference back on the NPF section ‘Britain Reconnected’, on the expectation that it would be put to the conference in the relevant section. It refers to policy on Gaza passed at 2025 conference, and the NPF’s failure to pay any regard to it. (Find it on page 26 of CAC report one – https://labour.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/2026-CAC-Report-1-Sun-FINAL1-1.pdf). Bristol Central CLP and Rushcliffe CLP had submitted reference backs in the same section, around the EU. Part rules say that all should have been taken.
There are three composites left for the last session of conference:
- Public Services 1
- Public Services 2
- AI in the interests of working people
The first public services composite is primarily about care workers and school support staff.
The composite rightly picks up the rights of migrant care workers, calling for “a rights-based sector-wide visa scheme for social care to ensure migrant care workers are not trapped by exploitative employers and enabling workers to challenge bad employers without the threat of deportation, no retrospective application of ILR rules to migrant care and other low-paid workers; and retention of the five-year route to settlement for workers.
All good and should be passed – but most of this was actually passed last year (in composite 13 – https://labour.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/CAC-Report-2-Addendum.pdf) while the government went in the opposite direction. It should be passed and pushed for – now is the time for unions and party members to push harder, not less.
The second public services composite responds to the so-ate of wildfires over the summer, and notes that climate change makes such things more common. It calls for investment in fire and rescue, recruitment of 5,000 firefighters, specialist PPE for all firefighters and wildfire training.
The artificial intelligence composite calls for regulation of AI (an independent AI regulator with enforcement powers) and increased public ownership and democratic control of “strategic AI assets”.
It also proposes trade unions legal rights to negotiate and agree the introduction and use of AI in the workplace.
