THE Great Hall in Newcastle’s Discovery Museum is a stunning venue and fast becoming home to the Majority movement’s public events.

Founded by former North-of-the-Tyne Mayor Jamie Driscoll, Majority, aside from the trade unions and with pushing 750 members, is probably the best-networked and best-organised left political organisation in Britain.

At room capacity, just short of 330 people attended Majority’s conference hosted by Hugo Fearnley with Steph Langford.

Fearnley, Driscoll’s wingman and former political adviser on the North of Tyne Combined Authority, opened the conference promising change with a new way of doing politics and quoted from Dan Millman’s 1980 book The Way of the Peaceful Warrior in which the protagonist’s mentor,  Socrates, advises: “The secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new.”  

Good advice for anyone in a political WhatsApp group.

Better known for hosting Drive on digital radio station 100% Retro, north-east DJ and co-host Steph Langford confessed to being out of her comfort zone and self-deprecatingly declared she is new to politics and doesn’t know much about it.

Zarah Sultana, sitting next to me, turned to face me, clearly agitated.

“It makes me angry hearing that, people think they don't know about politics.” Flexing both biceps she continued: “But they do know about politics — they are the ones with the power.”

Explaining her journey, Langford emphasised her reasons for joining Majority — “I want the world that my children grow up in to be better than the one yesterday.”

Langford is warm and lovely, attributes which came across well over the course of the afternoon, but Sultana was right to be agitated. Here was a woman who had every right to be on that platform. Women must not apologise for taking up political space. They must own it.

Combining policy ideas from the 2017 and ’19 Labour manifestos, the policy temperature was taken in the room and opinions echoed with voxpops from ordinary shoppers filmed on Newcastle’s shopping thoroughfare, Northumberland Street: taking water into public ownership, a wealth tax, reducing energy bills, affordable food, housing, tuition fees, increasing funds for Send — the wants go on but are familiar and known to many.

Citizens’ assemblies are the way forward for Majority and is how manifestos will be created, explained Fearnley. He reminded the audience that Driscoll pioneered them in the North of Tyne when he introduced them in the region, taking on climate change issues.

With pre-recorded contributions from Christine Lomas and Elizabeth Greener, who have both facilitated citizens’ assemblies with Majority, they outlined their benefits: providing opportunities to invite experts to inform decision-making; opportunities for everyone to listen and to be heard; democratic process; a place of safety to raise opinions; inclusion.

Driscoll outlined common faults with policy and the wider political system, offering alternatives to each fault. He said politicians need to make the decision to change: on climate change there are choices that have not been made; on mainstream media bias there is an accessible alternative media; for every protester outside asylum-seekers’ hotels, there are people standing up in defence; on public transport there is technology to reduce pollution, reduce traffic on roads, reduce fares.

When people think they can’t make change on their own, Driscoll reminded us that when an immigration centre in the multicultural heart of Newcastle was under attack last year, 3,000 people came out in peaceful support when, he stated, Labour politicians had been told not to attend.

Driscoll talked about the role of the suffragettes in changing conditions for women. He referred to Rosa Parks and the need to say No when it matters. Standing up can take courage, but it opens the way forward for others to stand up too — and when others follow you, that is to lead.

And thus Driscoll led the audience to his invitation to accept the call to lead. He wants 500 potential leaders to step up and step forward and lead in local government.

“All it takes is one council in the UK to change UK politics… And when you are prepared to stand up and say ‘Enough!’ — that is when you become a leader.”

Outlining the declining numbers of Labour councillors on Newcastle City Council, the recent landslide in support for Labour which has led the council since 2011, he asserted its ripeness for the Majority taking.

“We are the snowballs that will start an avalanche. Our culture is inclusive and everyone is welcome.”