Star date: 9th April 2015 

HAZEL BLEARS NOW NOMINATED FOR PAID CO-OP DIRECTORSHIP

Having stood down from her Salford and Eccles seat, Hazel Blears is now vying to be a paid `Member Nominated Director' of the Co-operative Group, overseeing the food and banking business of the company.

Blears is one of three Member-Nominated Directors, whose election is to be approved at the Co-op's Annual Meeting in May... "Co-operative values and principles have been central to my life and work" she states. But her nomination has already run into controversy.

Full details click here...

Following the shake-up at the Co-operative Group, its governance structure has been reformed and now the eleven person Board will have three Member-Nominated Directors (MNDs) whose work will involve `a minimum of approximately one to two days a month'. A statement on the Co-op website adds: "The remuneration for these positions...is commensurate with the role and responsibilities".*

To be an MND, applicants had to have been a member of the Co-operative Group for at least three financial years and had to "have earned at least 500 membership points though trade with qualifying Co-operative Group businesses in the 2014 financial year".

Applicants were also expected to have skills including "the highest standard of integrity", "financial and commercial acumen" and "awareness of the operational issues involved in managing a business the size of the Group".

Today it was announced that Hazel Blears had been chosen as one of the three paid MNDs (along with Ruth Spellman, chief executive of the Workers' Educational Association and Paul Chandler, former chief executive of Traidcraft), with their formal election to be ratified at the Co-op's Annual Meeting on May 16th.

However, her MND position has already proved controversial amongst some Co-op members...

"Well, these three are 'renowned' retailers, aren't they? Richard Pennycook and his team must be 'laughing' their heads off" wrote one member on the Co-operative News website "Hazel Blears? Wasn't she caught up in a Parliamentary expenses scandal? Wasn't she part of the Labour Government that 'accelerated' the demise of the Co-op Bank?"

Another member added: "So were only three suitably qualified candidates nominated? The 'Explanatory Notes' issued alongside the new rules specifically stated: `Candidates for Member Nominated Director seats, in common with all other Directors, must satisfy defined Eligibility Criteria and will be subject to a contested election by Members who are eligible to vote under the Rules'. I think most of us would understand `contested' to mean more candidates than there are seats..."

In her election address, Hazel Blears said the Co-operative group was a "great and worthwhile mission", adding "Co-operative values and principles have been central to my life and work..."

*The Salford Star asked the Co-operative Group what the pay for the `one or two day a month job' was. The Co-op responded that the pay is yet to be decided... "Ultimately the level is to be determined and approved."

* See also previous Salford Star article - Hazel Wins Palm D'Or Award for Bahrain Trip - click here