More support for co-ops in the Big Society

The Cabinet Office have issued a three page document and in it there a coalition pledge to "support co-ops, mutuals, charities and social enterprises"..

We will support the creation and expansion of mutuals, co-operatives, charities and social enterprises, and support these groups to have much greater involvement in the running of public services.

We will give public sector workers a new right to form employee-owned co-operatives and bid to take over the services they deliver. This will empower millions of public sector workers to become their own boss and help them to deliver better services.

We will use funds from dormant bank accounts to establish a Big Society Bank, which will provide new finance for neighbourhood groups, charities, social enterprises and other nongovernmental bodies.

Building The Big Society.pdf

De-municipalisation by the back door or a genuine attempt to deliver services for less public funding? When the honeymoon period of the new Con-Dems is over after the summer we'll probably know more. Selling off the Post Office (profits up 26% with falling revenues of 2%)  is a clue to the underlying agenda.

Why co-operatives are cool again

Well we didn't know they were uncool, maybe not fashionable or in the media spotlight but still cool. Reporter from The Guardian (back to supporting the Lib-Dems now they are on the up, but if you are old enough they supported the SDP in the 1980's - another party that broke the mould of British Politics) anyway it visits local workers co-operative Unicorn. The mutual model has legs...
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Read Paul Gosling

Paul Gosling writes a fortnightly column for the Co-operative News. It's a good informative read about financial matters of co-operatives and mutuals. You can see for yourself as the writings are available online.

He also writes, researches and broadcasts for lots of other titles.

Demutalism Failed

"The nationalisation and break up of Bradford & Bingley will represent a momentous event in the history of British banking, because it will mean that every building society that floated on the stock market in the wave of demutualisations of the past two decades will either have collapsed or been sold to a conventional bank." Robert Peston Blog at BBC
Mutalism we were told didn't have a future - it has now.

Mutual Football

Following the Co-operative Party pamphlet ‘A Golden Goal’ back in 1999 the Government established Supporters Direct..the concept of democratic supporter ownership and representation through mutual, not-for-profit structures is still growing.

Supporter Direct Conference - Friday 19th October 2007, Manchester Convention Centre (it's a little glass building next to GMEX, seen in photo )...opening speeches by Sir Richard Leese, Leader of Manchester City Council; James Purnell MP, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport; and Gordon Taylor, Chief Executive of the PFA...more
The Magazine - September 2007 (PDF)

Mutuals Are Trusted

"People in the UK trust co-operatives or mutuals far more to deal fairly with their customers, than either Government or private companies." It's from a YouGuv Poll (PDF 10 pages - Political & Consumer Attitudes, commissioned by the Co-operative Party). I think after the Northern Rock debacle it will now be higher. No mention in any news report of the stability of those building societies that are still mutual.

Search For A Mutual

The search facility at the FSA Mutuals Public Register is pretty thorough. Turns up some results you wouldn't expect. Organisations like Manchester Tenants Limited who've been running Burnage Garden Village since 1906, or how about Old Trafford Conservative Club on Seymour Grove. Actually quite a few old Conservative Clubs are registered under the Act. The latest entry for the area was Manchester City Supporters Society Ltd, March 2007.
Some stats for Manchester and thereabouts : I&P Societies (167), Building Societies (1), Credit Unions (14), Friendly Societies (46). Doesn't include Stockport or Sale which are located in Cheshire apparently. You always need some research skills to get the best out of the data.
FSA Mutuals Public Register

Financial Mutuals Bill

House of Commons had the Second Reading of the Financial Mutuals (Arrangements) Bill, which will make it easier for different types of financial mutuals to merge amongst other things. Proposed by Sir John Butterfill MP (Conservative; Bournemouth West), a long-standing supporter of the mutual sector.

Commenting on the bill, Sir John said: “"Having mutuals in financial services benefits everyone, but especially consumers who get better rates on their savings, mortgages and insurance, as well as more branches being kept open. If passed, this legislation will help to ensure that societies have access to the right type of finance if needed, consumers are even better protected, and the mutual sector could be strengthened by allowing assets and members to stay in the sector if mutuals want to merge."
(story from Mortgage Solutions)