The Co-operative Party was founded in 1917 by the co-operative movement – made up of member and employee-owned businesses determined to change how business is done and who shares its rewards.
That relationship continues today, with the Co-op supermarkets and retail societies on your high street continuing to support our Party and campaign with us on crucial issues like food poverty, ending violence against shopworkers, and promoting Fairtrade.
Democracy is a cornerstone of the co-op movement, so each year at their AGM, Co-op Group members vote on whether to continue its relationship with the Co-operative Party.
The Co-operative Party, working with the Labour Party, want to build a Britain where wealth and power are shared – and we want to do that in proud partnership with our movement. To help ensure that partnership continues and find out more about the Co-op Party – sign up now to get updates on voting ahead of the AGM.
Soon, those of us who regularly shop with the Co-operative Group (‘the Co-op’) will once again be asked to vote on continuing the partnership with Co-operative Party.
For over 100 years, the Co-operative Party and the co-operative movement have worked in partnership to build a society where power and wealth are shared. We are the political voice of the co-operative movement, taking co-operative policies and principles from the shop floor to the places where laws are made.
We are your voice at decision-making tables across the country: supporting co-operative ideas like fairtrade, food justice and protection for shopworkers. But for that work to continue, we need your vote.
To keep this historic link between our movement and our Party and to continue the amazing successes we've achieved together, sign up now to get an update when voting begins.
"The Co-op" is more than a shop: it's a critical part of a movement dedicated to changing the way power and wealth are shared.
From being the first supermarket to stock Fairtrade products to their brilliant work on tackling the climate emergency by pioneering the elimination of plastic waste, they show us a different, more ethical way to do business.
Your blue card is more than a way to earn rewards for yourself. As you shop, you are supporting causes in your local community. You are signalling your support for an ethical business that pays its fair share of tax. You are earning the right to make decisions about how the Co-op Group should use its power. You make the work we do possible.
Your card means you are part of a movement. You're not just a shopper. You're a pioneer.
We know that co‑operative values don't stop at the shopfront. The principles that lie behind successful co‑operatives – democratic control by customers and workers, and a fair share of the wealth we create together – ought to extend to the wider economy and our society.
As we slowly emerge from the pandemic, we are at a crossroads. We can return to the unequal economy that characterised pre-Covid Britain, or we can create something better. The last two years have shown that we can respond to crisis with co-operation, with communities – not corporations – leading the way.
It's time we gave communities more ownership of the wider economy. By widening ownership, we can narrow inequality and create a new normal – one where you own your workplace, own your community and own the future.
For over 90 years, the Labour and Co-operative Parties have worked together and stood joint candidates to build a country where wealth and power are shared. Today, we share over 1,000 elected representatives right around the country.
Whether in government or opposition, for a century the Co-operative Party has been a voice for co-operative values and principles in the places where decisions are taken, and laws are made.
Over a century ago, the individual co-operative societies that make up the UK co-op movement came together to establish the Co-operative Party as their political voice. Since then, these co-operatives have regularly consulted their members and voted on whether to continue their subscription to the Party.
Today, the largest of these co-operative societies is the Co-operative Group (‘the Co-op’), which sells food, funeral care and insurance across the country.
For the past six years, the Co-op has held a direct ballot of its members on whether to maintain the subscription, and on all occasions, Co-op members have approved maintaining the link overwhelmingly.
The vote is taking place once again this year, and we are therefore asking for your support.
You are likely to be able to vote if:
You may not be able to vote if:
If you are unsure whether you are eligible to vote, visit https://membership.coop.co.uk/eligibility-to-vote (requires you to be logged in) or call 0800 0686 727.
Being a member of the Co-operative Party (with a purple membership card) does not automatically make you eligible in this vote – though many Party members will be eligible, and will receive a voting pack by post or email.
Eligible voters will receive a voting pack by post or email when voting begins.
Don't forget: to help ensure that history partnership between our Party and our movement continues and find out more about the Co-op Party – sign up now to get updates from the co-operative movement.
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