NEC: “No further action” over boycott call

Last week the union’s NEC met. One of the issues on the agenda is the so-called Israel boycott, which has been debated widely here and elsewhere.

For those of you who have been on the planet Ork for the past few months, the motion Composite B didn’t exactly call for a boycott, but to urge the TUC to call for a boycott. The motion was passed by a narrow margin. However, there has still been a lot of controversy over this particular ADM decision and a campaign was launched by union members at the BBC and elsewhere urging a ballot on this issue.

Well, last week the NEC agreed not to take the boycott call any further. Since the motion was passed in April, the union has received a letter from the TUC which rejected the idea of a boycott. It said:

General Council is likely to take the position that this is not a priority for the PGFTU, still less the Histadrut, and would undermine our ability to act as go-betweens”, and that “Congress, which has consistently supported the same approach, would also be to oppose the call”.

The NEC says that as a result of this letter, the union will take “no further action” on the call for a boycott. It also recognises the opposition to the motion from branches, chapels and individual members.

The NEC’s motion rejects accusations of antisemitism and resolves to continue the union’s work with the Israeli journalists’ union. It calls for members to unite behind the union’s campaigns on industrial issues.

What happens now is uncertain. The motion still stands although the NEC say it will not be acted upon now that the TUC has made its position clear. The NEC point out that it can still be overturned at ADM next year.

The BBC campaigners seem happy enough with the outcome. They say they are now turning thier attention to making the union more responsive to the wider membership.

So as this saga ends, what has been won and what has been lost? We’ve lost members – the NUJ said it was 16 at the last count, though the Stop the NUJ Boycott blog say it’s 31.

On the other hand the issue has stimulated debate on a union policy. Let’s hope that next time these kind of debates will happen at the right time – before ADM – so members really can make a difference.