The Labour Party will host an economic conference on Saturday 11^th November at Lincoln’s Bishop Grosseteste University from 11am -; 4pm. The event will mark the 800^th anniversary of the signing of the Charter of the Forest in Lincoln, which is home to one of the two surviving copies. The Charter was intended to ensure that people had access to the Commons -; the cultural and natural resources available freely to everyone – for subsistence by guaranteeing commons rights to food and fuel.

The event forms part of a series of conferences that Labour’s Shadow Treasury team are organising around the country, hoping to broaden access and raise the level of debate around economic issues.

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The Shadow Chancellor, John McDonnell MP, will address the conference on Labour’s plans to bring back key industries into public ownership. The conference will also hear from Professor Guy Standing and local MP Karen Lee on co-operative ways of working, land ownership and the plunder of the commons.

Speakers will highlight public ownership as a force for good and encourage us to question the role that common ownership could play in achieving a democratic and effective economy.

Workshops will focus on

Public Ownership and the Labour Party’s commitment to more democratic ownership structures to ensure our economy can deliver for the many not the few. The workshop will focus on Water, Rail and the Royal Mail and discuss how public ownership could deliver lower prices, more accountability, greater investment and a more sustainable economy.

The role of co-operatives, social enterprises and self-organised groups and platforms in moving towards a new economy fit for the 21st Century. Europe has seen the emergence of a ‘commons movement’ with local people coming together to run social centres, town energy networks, and develop social platforms that mutually support workers

New concepts of land ownership and government. The UKhas some of the most concentrated land ownership in the western world, much of it shrouded in secrecy. The workshop will explore how land ownership is both a key driver of inequality and a cause of degradation of natural resources.