Minutes of EMAG committee meeting, 10th May 2001

Present: Vincent Nolan, Tom Lake, Michael Lister, Paul Braithwaite, David Browning, Alex Henney, Colin Slater, Andrew Pike (EMAG members)

Apologies: Adrian Howard-Jones (in Holland) , John Gardner (in hopsital)

1. Minutes
   
   The Minutes of the meeting held on April 10th, as published on the website, were approved.
   
   
2. Membership
   
   There had been 29 new members since the last meeting, (24 of them since last weekend's advertising) bringing in £ 570.00 of additional revenue bringing the total to approximately 1,630
   
   
3. Finance
   
   ML reported that there was now £22,672 at the bank, of which £16,000 was in an Instant Savings Account and £6,672 in the Current Account. The cost of the advertising was about £ 14,200 which would reduce the balance to £ 8,472 (before the cost of this meeting).
   
   
4. Proxies
   
   ML has been contacted by 16 Equitable members appointing him as their proxy at the AGM. More may have sent their proxy direct to ELAS. ML will check the situation and the procedure for casting proxy votes with Peter Wilmot at ELAS. The EMAG website received 2,500 hits over the weekend.
   
   
5. Warren Report
   
   No information was available beyond AH-J's emails of 9th May in which he wrote ``for the moment, we know nothing whatsoever about the content of the document''.
   
   
6. ELAS AGM
   
   EMAG will ensure a poll on each Resolution to appoint a Director (ELAS would certainly want this anyway). ML will check procedures with Wilmot to clarify the position and will e-mail the information to the Committee. ML will use the proxies to vote for the 5 Action Group nominees and Doogan, plus Treves and Thomson and will vote against all other candidates.
   
   VN will draft a question for submission at the AGM on the need for reform of the Mem and Arts. AH will draft a question on Member Democracy - direct member representation on the Board. All Committee members will circulate suggested questions and TL will put them on the website.
   
   EMAG committee members will assemble at the Main Entrance of the Londond Arena, immediately oppposite the Docklands Light Railway Station, at 10.30 am on the morning of the AGM>
   
   
7. Capping/Compromise Meeting
   
   VN and CS reported on the meeting on April 26th (which was held under Chatham House rules). The meeting established broad agreement on the principles to be met by any compromise proposal and explored 4 options against these principles. It seemed that to separate GAR and non-GAR funds for the future would not be feasible owing to the solvency requirements of the GAR fund. There seemed to be some recognition by ELAS that it might be possible to find a differenet way of funding the compomise (using Colin Slater's approach rather than the reserves created by the Jan-July 2000 freeeze on bonuses). A `hybrid' option which included some compensation to non-GARs (paricularly the recent ones who had not had the benefit of the high bonuses of the previous years) was developed, for further analysis by ELAS. VN said a further meeting was planned for the week of May 14th (now May 18th at 9.00 am at Aylesbury).
   
   
8. EMAG Members' General Meeting
   
   EMAG Members General Meeting The General Meeting of EMAG members has been fixed for Monday June 18th at 6.30 p.m at the Reform Club, Londo n (courtesy of Edgar Samuel). ML and TL will send out notices of the meeting to EMAG members. ML will draw up accounts to the nearest conv enient date VN will draft a Report to members and a proposal on the future of EMA G for circulation to Committee members. Possible tasks for EMAG inclu ded:
   1. monitoring of possible legal action against former Directors and advisers
   2. reform of Mem and Arts
   3. monitoring of capping negotiations and and analysis of propos al
   4. pulling Action groups together
   
   
   Present committee members will stand down and offer themselves for e- election if they so wish. AH and TL will stand for re-election; PB an d DB had not yet decided; VN and ML (as previously stated) will not o ffer themselves for re-election. Colin Slater will stand for election ; Andrew Pike will not, but will continue to advise the new Committee on legal matters if they so wish. VN will check with absent Committe e members (AH-J, EH, JG) whether they wish to stand for re-election
   
   We may propose that the meeting authorises the new Committee to adopt a Constitution
   
   It was agreed that much would depend on the attendance and the mood o f the meeting
   
   
9. Next Meeting
   
   Monday, June 11th at 2cv Research, if available, 6.30 pm for 7.00 pm.