Statement from the Progressive Labour Party:
The Progressive Labour Party wishes to provide further clarity on the procedural reasons for Central Committee’s decision to postpone the 61st Annual General Conference.
Under the Party Constitution, the Leader and Deputy Leader are elected at Conference by delegates chosen by the Branches. That process requires Party Headquarters to provide verified membership lists to the Branches, which then complete the necessary certification and delegate selection process.
The current court proceedings concern matters directly affecting membership and delegate eligibility. Until those issues are resolved, the Party cannot responsibly finalise the membership and delegate process upon which the remaining Conference timetable depends.
The substantive hearing is scheduled for October 1 and 2. Given that timetable, it is no longer practicable to complete the remaining constitutional and administrative requirements ahead of the Conference originally scheduled for October 28 to 30.
The Party Constitution provides for Central Committee to postpone Conference where circumstances warrant it, subject to the constitutional timeframe for holding the Conference. Postponement of an Annual Conference is also not without precedent. The Party’s 2016 Annual Conference was similarly held later in the year following issues affecting the membership and Conference process.
To be clear, this is a matter of process, not preference.
The leadership election will proceed. The August 31, 2026 membership eligibility cutoff remains unchanged, and the postponement does not reopen or extend the membership period for the purposes of this Conference.
Every member deserves a leadership election conducted on a clear constitutional basis and an outcome whose legitimacy cannot reasonably be called into question. The purpose of the postponement is to protect the integrity of that process and ensure that whoever is elected Leader has a clear mandate to lead the Party forward.
