Apply for a New Working Group
The Federal Policy Committee regularly sets up new policy working groups. It is seeking applications from party members who wish to serve on the Mental Health policy working group and the High Streets and Town Centres policy working group. This is a real opportunity to help shape the party’s policies. The working groups will take evidence and prepare policy proposals to submit to Spring Conference 2026. Working group members are expected to attend meetings (in person or remotely), input their ideas for policy, and play a role in drafting the policy paper. The position is voluntary. The deadline for applications is 21 April 2025.
The working groups open to applications are:
Economy
Boosting productivity and getting the economy growing strongly and sustainably is critical for improving people’s living standards and wellbeing, expanding opportunity, and raising money to spend on public services and defence.
A new policy working group will build on our 2024 general election manifesto to further develop our distinctive Liberal Democrat narrative on why the economy has been performing so poorly, how to turn it around, and how to make sure everyone feels the benefits of growth equitably.
International Security
Last year, the party endorsed a wide-ranging policy paper on international security covering defence and security, diplomacy, international development and soft power. We knew then that a Trump return to the White House would pose new challenges.
Now that the grave challenges to the future of NATO, European security and more are starting to become clear, and will continue to evolve, a new policy working group will review our previous approach in the light of the world of ongoing developments, to outline our distinctive Liberal Democrat response to Trump, Putin and the other global challenges we face.
Democracy
After years of Conservative chaos and scandal, and months of Labour failure and inaction, public trust in politics is lower than ever – and we have seen how populists and authoritarians in the UK and around the world seek to exploit that lack of trust and new media to undermine our fundamental liberal democratic principles.
A new working group will develop the Liberal Democrat defence of our liberal democracy: how to protect it from foreign interference, restore public trust, and put meaningful power in people’s hands.
Primary Healthcare
A lack of access to primary healthcare is one of the biggest challenges people face. Millions of people wait weeks for a GP appointment, and seeing an NHS dentist can be almost impossible. This is bad for patients and bad for the NHS, increasing the pressure on ambulances and A&E as more people end up in hospital who shouldn’t have to be there. If we get it right, a well-functioning primary care system could help unlock a healthier life for us all, and a better and more effective NHS.
A new policy working group will develop our plan to tackle this crisis – improving early access to GP services, community pharmacies and dentists so everyone can get the healthcare they need, when and where they need it.
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Working groups normally contain about 15-20 party members. In recent years we have been very glad to receive a large number of applications to be on policy working groups; typically between 100 and 200 for each group. In a context therefore where up to 90% of applicants may not end up on the working group, we are understandably looking for people with a strong level of understanding of the policy area concerned, including through lived experience, rather than simply more general support for it.
Applicants are asked to answer four substantive questions, about their party experience; any experience in the policy field under discussion; their views on some of the key questions; and anything else they would like to say.
At the start of the working group process, FPC has usually at least two full discussions of the policy area and the group’s remit, and areas of knowledge or experience it would particularly like to see reflected in the working group’s membership. With this guidance in mind, all applications are then read by an FPC sub-group comprising two vice chairs of the committee and three other members of the committee, along with policy unit staff. They review all applications individually and meet together to then recommend a working group to FPC.
In creating the working group, the central concept is ‘balance’. Balance between different areas of knowledge within the working group’s scope, and between contrasting views on the main areas of difference of view. If leading members of any relevant party AOs have applied, this would normally be reflected in the group’s membership. There is also a very strong emphasis on balance of a range of demographic factors, including gender, age, geography, LGBTI status, ethnicity and socio-economic background. A balance between specialist policy knowledge and lived experience of the area concerned will also be sought.
Clearly, balancing all these areas into a group of about 15-20 members requires some difficult trade-offs, and the selection of those who are appointed will reflect this rather than be a judgement that an applicant does not have any useful experience or insight to bring this area. Our policy process does also offer a range of other ways for those not part of the group to contribute to the final outcome, through a range of formal and informal consultation mechanisms as well as the final debate at Conference.
If you have any questions about the process, please email Alexander Payne alexander.payne@libdems.org.uk