13.11.2025

Our joint key amendments

This is the current version of the Sheffield Demands that were first developed by the steering committee of the Sheffield branch of Your Party. They have since been adopted and developed by a number of organisations and branches

We hope that Your Party will become a truly democratic, socialist and member-led mass party of the working class. This requires a culture of open debate, free speech and the right of members to get together in platforms and tendencies.

In order to stand up to global capitalism, it needs to be thoroughly internationalist, anti-imperialist and anti-racist - which means it should be explicitly and uncompromisingly anti-Zionist. It must also stand in solidarity and actively fight for the rights of refugees, asylum-seekers, people with disabilities, ethnic minorities, women, trans people and all other oppressed groups of people, recognising the overlapping and interrelated struggles these groups face. Your Party must actively empower marginalised voices to fight for their own liberation - a fight that is embedded in class struggle.

In this spirit, we campaign for the following changes to the draft constitution, standing orders and document on organisational strategy.

1. For a party of the whole left

All left groups, large and small, should be positively welcomed into the party.

• Delete: “Members may not hold membership in any other national political party, except if specified by the CEC.”
• Delete: “Members may not affiliate with or participate in organisations undermining party values.”
• Add: Members should have full rights to organise openly into tendencies or platforms, permanent or temporary, and advocate publicly for political positions, even if they differ from the current majority.

2. For accountability, free speech and openness

Democracy requires transparency. Members cannot exercise control if decisions are hidden behind confidentiality rules.

• Delete: “Members must accordingly respect the confidentiality of internal party matters.”
• Add: “Detailed minutes of all CEC and officers’ group meetings should be published within seven days, for members to review.”

3. Power to the members and the branches

We cannot wait until after the leadership elections in March 2026 before YP branches are officially set up. There are dozens of vibrant proto-branches that have been meeting for many months.

• Delete: “The CEC must ‘oversee’ the establishment of branches.”
• Add: “Branches should be established immediately by inviting all local members to a foundation meeting. If there are rival groups or other problems, HQ may facilitate such a meeting, if requested by at least one of the branches.”
• Delete: “Members must be UK residents or have the right to vote in UK elections.”
• Add: “Membership is open to anyone who lives in Britain or has the right to vote in UK elections. We should not exclude migrants and refugees who do not hold residents’ rights.”
• Add: “Branches should receive at least 50% of local members’ fees.”
• Add: “Branches should be formed along real community lines, not just electoral boundaries - the decision should rest with the branches themselves.”
• Add: “Local branches should decide how they organise, if they want to set up local assemblies - and how those should be run.”
• Add: “There should be a proper first conference in 2026, with democratically elected delegates from properly constituted branches.”
• Add: “The sovereignty of the party resides with the membership, whose collective democratic participation in branches and at conferences determines the party’s policy and programme. Guaranteeing members an equal right to participate in the democratic process requires that this right be reserved exclusively for individual members. While organisations and trade unions are welcome to affiliate by accepting the party’s programme and are invited to organise as caucuses, they shall not have special voting rights or any other special privileges as organisations.”
• Add: “All officers should be elected, accountable and subject to recall.”

4. For a collective leadership

We should avoid a replica of Labour’s unaccountable structures.

• The party’s leadership model should be democratically determined by its founding conference. Thereafter the entire leadership body should be elected at annual conference, by branch delegates, through single transferable vote under the Droop quota (more commonly known as Scottish STV).
• There should be no unelected officers’ group running the party, no automatic seats on the leadership body. All officers should be elected from within the CEC, so they can be held accountable.
• All CEC members should be recallable - at conference and by branch petition.

5. For a fair and independent disciplinary process

There is no mention of a disciplinary process in the four documents. We need clear rules focusing on an independent process, with natural justice, clear timelines and easy appeals procedures.

6. Holding our representatives to account

The current proposal that it would require 40% of all local members to sign a recall petition is impossible to meet.

• Add: “Branches should be able to decide by simple majority vote to start recall proceedings.”
• Add: “MPs and all public officeholders should receive no more than the average wage of a skilled worker, with the rest being donated to the party.”

Amendment guide

To make sure your changes actually go through, we recommend that you press the ‘thumb down’ in the relevant section, write down the proposed changes in the little window, as well as in the relevant section in the text (ie, twice).

Draft constitution

3a) Conference

Add: “There should be a proper first conference in 2026, with democratically elected delegates from properly constituted branches.”

3b) Central Executive Committee and 3c) Leadership

Delete both sections.

Replace with:

“The party’s leadership model should be democratically determined by its founding conference. Thereafter the entire leadership body should be elected at annual conference, by branch delegates, through single transferable vote under the Droop quota (more commonly known as Scottish STV).

“There should be no unelected officers’ group running the party, no automatic seats on the leadership body. All officers should be elected from within the CEC, so they can be held accountable.

“All CEC members should be recallable - at conference and by branch petition.

“Detailed minutes of all CEC and officers’ group meetings should be published within seven days, for members to review.”

Motivation: We should avoid a replica of Labour’s unaccountable structures.

3d) Branches

Paragraph 1

Add at the end: “Branches should be formed along real community lines, not just electoral boundaries - the decision should rest with the branches themselves.”

Paragraph 2

Delete: “in a process overseen by the CEC or its appointed representative”.

Add: “Branches should be established immediately by inviting all local members to a foundation meeting. If there are rival groups or other problems, HQ may facilitate such a meeting, if requested by at least one of the branches. All officers should be elected, accountable and subject to recall.”

Motivation: We cannot wait until after the leadership elections in March 2026 before YP branches are officially set up. There are dozens of vibrant proto-branches that have been meeting for many months.

Paragraph 8

Delete: “and shall be appropriately resourced to do so”.

Add: “Branches should receive at least 50% of local members’ fees.”

Paragraph 9

Delete: “All branches shall undertake the necessary work to run regular public-facing, local community assemblies. These assemblies shall be democratic and contribute to community activity and party policy development.”

Replace with: “Local branches should decide how they organise, if they want to set up local assemblies - and how those should be run.”

4) Membership

Add new first paragraph: “The sovereignty of the party resides with the membership, whose collective democratic participation in branches and at conferences determines the party’s policy and programme. Guaranteeing members an equal right to participate in the democratic process requires that this right be reserved exclusively for individual members.”

Paragraph 2

Delete: “Members must accordingly respect the confidentiality of internal party matters.”

Motivation: Democracy requires transparency. Members cannot exercise control if decisions are hidden behind confidentiality rules.

Paragraph 11

Delete: “Members may not hold membership in any other national political party, except if specified by the CEC.”

Replace with: “Members should have full rights to organise openly into tendencies or platforms, permanent or temporary, and advocate publicly for political positions, even if they differ from the current majority.”

Paragraph 12

Delete: “Members may not affiliate with or participate in organisations undermining party values.”

Motivation: “All left groups, large and small, should be positively welcomed into the party.”

Paragraph 13

Delete: “Members must be UK residents or have the right to vote in UK elections.”

Replace with: “Membership is open to anyone who lives in Britain or has the right to vote in UK elections.”

Motivation: We do not exclude migrants and refugees who do not hold residents’ rights.

Add new paragraph at the end:

“We will establish a disciplinary process with clear rules focusing on an independent process, with natural justice, clear timelines and easy appeals procedures.”

Motivation: There is no mention of a disciplinary process in the four documents.

5) Affiliates

Add: “While organisations and trade unions are welcome to affiliate by accepting the party’s programme and are invited to organise as caucuses, they shall not have special voting rights or any other special privileges as organisations.”

Standing orders

3. Conduct of Party elections

There are three occurrences of ‘Recall votes’ and we recommend the same process for all three:

3. a. v) Recall Votes for Local Officers

3. b. v) Recall Votes for National Officers

3. c. iv) Recall Votes for public office holders

Delete: “If 40% of members in good standing within the local party sign a dedicated recall petition for an officer, then this will trigger a vote on that party officer’s (office holder’s) continuation in the role. Active recall petitions will be available on the party website for a period of 28 days.”

Replace with: “All officers and public office holders should be elected, accountable and subject to recall. Branches should be able to decide by simple majority vote to start recall proceedings.”

Motivation: It is almost impossible to get 40% of all local members to sign a recall petition. We need real accountability.

Add new point 3. c. vi)

“MPs and all public officeholders should receive no more than the average wage of a skilled worker, with the rest being donated to the party.”

Organisational strategy

5. The Inaugural CEC

Delete point 5. iv: “There shall be additional reserved seats for organised sections (no more than five) and devolved nation representatives (one for each of Scotland and Wales), when these structures have been properly established.”

Email democraticunityyp@gmail.com if your organisation or branch wants to support the Sheffield Demands initiative