I approached the Standing Order Committee room with some trepidation, as it had been rumoured that they eat virgin journalists for breakfast. Never to be deterred, I crossed the threshold, fought off the security guards, wrestled the troll and I was in their inner sanctum; newly sharpened pencil in hand, fearlessly ready to face whatever they threw at me.
An hour later, I emerged – having been regaled and entertained with witty accounts of ADMs gone by and with a whole new bunch of people on my Christmas card list. Not what I expected at all!
The Standing Order Committee is here to ensure that all motions abide by the rules, can be clearly understood and will be debated fairly and only once. That sounds simple enough but, as we all know, the path to articulation and ultimate implementation of a motion can be littered with pitfalls and potholes.
A helping hand for first time delegates
Rory MacLeod describes the SOC as “the oil in the machine that is the ADM”. Without that oil it would seize and become a turgid experience for all concerned.
With years of experience of ADMs and a stint as an Editor in the Falklands (he confirmed that penguins do not, in fact, fall over backwards when RAF jets fly over, but suspects that some ADM delegates might) he is very well placed to provide guidance to the array of people who burst or skulk through their doors looking for answers.
Rory takes pride in helping first time delegates and is extremely encouraging when they wish to deliver a maiden speech, giving them the confidence to seize their three minutes and make the most of the obligatory applause and leeway they will get on that occasion.
He believes in the power of good planning and reminisces about the ADM that coincided with a particularly important Scotland/Ireland football match that was taking place in the pub next to the conference hall.
He left the game to give his (obviously eloquent) speech proposing the motion and, just before the vote, watched all the Irish and Scottish delegates file in, fill the back three rows, vote for the motion and all file back out to the game. Who says men shouldn’t organise outings to breweries?
The motions that never saw the light of day
John Lister listed the reasons why motions may not be put forward. Hard as it is to believe, journalist can sometimes find it difficult to express themselves in a way that can be clearly understood and these proposals are rejected as ‘Void for uncertainty of meaning’ or ‘Vums’ as they are fondly called. This year, a motion almost never saw the light of day due to the inordinately long and complicated spelling of ‘competititititively’.
Other reasons may be as simple as the fact that one of the journalistic ‘Six Ws’ is missing from a late notice motion. Frustrating, but it happens. The Devil is in the detail.
Like Rory, John Lister has many years of experience of being in the SOC. He takes pride in helping put together the large composites that may contain 15/20 separate sections and watching them turn into well-focused debates – such as this year’s ‘Future of the Media’ motion.
John remembers past ADMs with fondness, and some of the hangovers are indelibly printed on his psyche, such as the ‘bottle of brandy’ Eastbourne night followed by the futile quest for packets of Resolve the following morning.
Perhaps his favourite memory though was working on a completely spoof paper proposing that the (potentially hungover) delegates stayed until 8pm on the Sunday night. The motion was moved and vehemently supported by Seamus Dooley. The date was April 1st 2001. Keep your wits about you should a future ADM ever fall in the Spring…
A hive of activity
Pat Healy realises that their role can sometimes be perceived as ‘pedantry in motion’ but she is unfazed by this due to her faith in the process that keeps the ADM in check.
She also has many fond memories and recalls the time that the Bristol branch proposed that multi-millionaire members of the NEC should fund lunch for the Branch Chairs. This was thrown out with the recommendation that it reappeared, but this time including the SOC. A cornucopian feast was subsequently enjoyed by all at the appropriately named ‘Rules’ restaurant in London.
The sweatshop that is the SOC committee room is a hive of activity. The live feed of the ADM pervades and the door may as well be revolving with the amount of comings and goings. It’s no wonder that the pot may occasionally boil over and a well-aimed “F**K off, I’m too BUSY” may be launched at a well-meaning but irritating delegate when the pressure cooker finally explodes.
It’s all in the name of facilitation…
