Constitution

Date of Constitution (last amended): 11-07-2013

Update (03-10-2014): the named members of the Executive Committee have been added.

Update (08-09-2023): articles 11 and 14 have been updated as per the result of the Bologna membership meeting.

1 Name

International Initiative for Promoting Political Economy (IIPPE)

2 National Location of Principal Office

65 Thrale Road, London SW6 1NU, United Kingdom

3 Objects

i) to promote engagement with Marxist political economy;

ii) to welcome participation of and critical engagement with other political economy and heterodox schools in economics;

iii) to command and criticise mainstream economics;

iv) to assess and advance political economy across other social sciences;

v) to engage with activism through formulation of progressive policy and support for progressive movements;

vi) to promote and facilitate the collective pursuit by its members of the aims indicated above within Working Groups and within IIPPE as a whole; and

vii) to promote the sharing of knowledge and information relevant to the pursuit of those aims within and across the Working Groups, IIPPE as a whole, academia, and society, namely through virtual fora, newsletters, seminars, conferences, publications and other means of communication.

4 Working Groups

The academic structure of IIPPE is managed through Working Groups.

The Working Groups are entirely self-run structures that promote and facilitate the pursuit of IIPPE’s aims within a specific existential, theoretical or political field. This shall be made explicit in the name of the Working Group and in a short statement to be made public on the IIPPE website.

Working Groups shall be created by any group of at least three IIPPE Members stating their wish to do so in writing to the Executive Committee, which shall subsequently notify the Council. The creation of a new working group will normally be the result of those Members wishing to pursue the activities described in Clause 3 on a topic and/or along theoretical or methodological lines that significantly differ from those undertaken within already existing groups, while abiding to the general aims of IIPPE as stated in Clause 3. Working Groups will enter into existence automatically upon written communication to the Executive Committee. This process of approval shall seek to ensure that there are legitimate grounds for wishing to undertake Working Group activity within a different Working Group to those already in existence, and subsequent announcement of the decision reached by the Council shall be made to the Membership through appropriate channels.

Each Working Group shall have one or more coordinators. The coordinator(s) shall be elected or nominated as part of the original procedure to create the Working Group, or through any subsequent selection or nomination process within the Working Group.

Membership of a Working Group is activated by request to the current coordinator(s) and is valid upon receipt of that request. The presumption is that membership is automatic, subject to each Working Group defining its own procedures for running itself and undertaking its activities.

Working Groups are encouraged to share some of the results of their activities with the broader membership of IIPPE, namely at the Annual Conference and through Working Papers and other means of communication. They are also encouraged actively to share some of those results with academia and society in general.

Working Groups may be terminated through a resolution of the Executive Committee seconded by majority at a General Membership Meeting, in the event of gross violation of IIPPE’s aims as indicated in Clause 3 or of lack of significant activity over the course of the previous two years.

5 Application of income and property

The income and property of IIPPE will be applied solely towards the promotion of the objects (Clause 3).

6 Liability of Members to contribute to the assets of the CIO if it is wound up

If IIPPE is wound up, the Members have no liability to contribute to its assets and no personal responsibility for settling its debts and liabilities

7 Membership of IIPPE

i) Membership is open to all persons sympathetic to the aims of IIPPE and willing to abide by the Constitution.

ii) Membership cannot be transferred.

iii) Membership comes to an end if the Member sends notice of such to the Council or money owed to IIPPE (in case of full membership) is not paid for more than 12 months after it falling due.

iv) There are two classes of membership:

i. Full Membership – which requires payment of the membership fee and allows voting rights in Members’ decisions

ii. Associate Membership – does not require payment of fees and does not have voting rights. Reference to Members in the rest of this Constitution does not refer to Associate Members

v) Membership fees shall be determined annually by a resolution proposed and seconded at a Meeting in accordance with Clause 9.6

vi) In the event of a failure of a resolution concerning membership fees to gain an overall majority according to Clause 9.6, the amount shall remain unaltered.

8 Members’ decisions

(1) Except for those decisions taken in a particular way as indicated in sub Clause 3 of this Clause, decisions of the Members of IIPPE may be taken either by vote at a General Meeting as provided in sub-Clause 2 of this Clause or by written resolution as provided in sub-Clause 3 of this Clause.

(2) Subject to sub-Clause (3) of this Clause any decision of the Members of IIPPE may be taken by electronic means agreed by a simple majority of all the Members who would have been entitled to vote upon it had it been proposed at a General Meeting

(3) The following decisions have to be taken in a particular way

a. Any decision to remove an Officer (see Clause 13)

b. Any decision to amend this Constitution must be taken in accordance with Clause 22 of this Constitution (Amendment of Constitution)

c. Any decision to wind up or dissolve IIPPE must be taken in accordance with Clause 23 of this Constitution (Voluntary winding up or dissolution).

9 General Meetings of Members

(1) Types of General Meetings

An Annual General Meeting (AGM) will be held within 18 months of the registration of IIPPE and subsequent AGMs will be held at intervals of not more than 15 months. The AGM will receive the annual statement of accounts and the Officers’ Annual Report and must elect Officers as required under Clause 11.

Other General Meetings may be held at any time.

(2) Calling General Meetings

a. The Executive Committee (EC)

i. must call the AGM in accordance with sub-Clause 1 of this Clause and identify it as such in the notice of the Meeting and

ii. may call other General Meetings of Members at any time

b. The EC must within 21 days call a General Meeting of the Members of IIPPE if:

i. They receive a request to do so from at least 10% of the Members and

ii. The request states the general nature of the business to be dealt with at the Meeting and is authenticated by the Members making the request.

(3) Notice of General Meetings

IIPPE EC must give at least 14 clear days notice of any General Meeting to all of the Members

The Agenda for the Meeting shall include all motions presented to the EC at least ten days in advance of the Meeting and may include any other business deemed relevant by the Officers.

The Agenda shall be circulated to the Members through appropriate channels at least four days in advance of the General Meeting.

(4) Chairing of General Meetings

Meetings shall be chaired by the IIPPE Chair or Vice-Chair if present. If not, the Members present shall elect a Chair to preside at the Meeting.

(5) Quorum at General Meetings

No business may be transacted at any General Meeting of the Members of the IIPPE unless a quorum is present when the Meeting starts. The quorum for General Meetings shall be the greater of 3% or three Members.

(6) Voting at General Meeting

a. Any decision other than one falling within Clause 8(3) (decisions that must be taken in a particular way) shall be taken by a simple majority of votes cast at the Meeting. Every Member present has one vote.

b. A resolution put to the vote in a Meeting shall be decided on a show of hands unless (before or on the declaration of the result of a show of hands) a (written) poll is duly demanded. A poll may be demanded by the Chair or by at least 10% of the Members present in person or by proxy at the Meeting.

c. A poll may be taken at the Meeting or at some other time and place or through the use of postal or electronic communications as specified by the Chair

d. In the event of an equality of votes the Chair of the Meeting shall have a second or casting vote

(7) Adjournment of Meetings

The Chair may with the consent of a Meeting at which a quorum is present adjourn the Meeting to another time and/or place.

10 IIPPE Executive Committee and Council

The Officers of IIPPE shall be composed of the Executive Committee and the Council. The Officers shall manage the affairs of IIPPE.

10.1 Executive Committee

The Executive Committee (EC) shall be composed of the

Chairperson
Vice-Chair
Treasurer
General Secretary

The EC shall be responsible for defining IIPPE’s strategic orientation and managing the affairs of IIPPE, its finances, processing membership applications, maintenance of membership lists, accounts and other records.

The Chairperson will represent IIPPE in official dealings with other organisations or individuals. Should the Chair be unable to fulfil this responsibility on a particular occasion and for a particular purpose, s/he may delegate this responsibility to the Vice-Chairperson (by default) or to a Member of IIPPE of his/her choosing according to the circumstances. Delegation of this responsibility is valid upon communication to the Council.

The EC shall present an Annual Report to the Council which shall include financial and activity reports for the previous year. This AR shall be made available to the Council at least one month before the AGM and to the broader membership at that Meeting as well as via online communication. The Council shall approve or reject the Report.

The Treasurer and one other Member of IIPPE voted by the Council will be joint signatories of IIPPE’s bank account and jointly responsible for the use of that account. In particular the Treasurer will be responsible for keeping a detailed account of any transactions conducted in the name of IIPPE as well as all income and expenditure, to be presented in summary form in the Annual Report.

The Executive Committee shall seek the Council’s approval on any decisions of significant strategic or financial bearing that it wishes to implement.

All four members of the EC shall be Members of the Council.

Official communication to the EC shall be made via its institutional e-mail address which shall be made public on the IIPPE website.

The financial activity is the responsibility of the Executive Committee, subject to scrutiny by the Council and the Membership.

Donations by both Members and non-Members may be anonymous up to the sum of 200 British Pounds. From this amount onwards, notification of the amount of the donation and the identity of the donor must be made to the Membership through appropriate channels.

Priority in terms of the utilisation of the financial resources shall be given to: (i) funding all activities and procedures required by these Statutes; (ii) enabling the viability of the Annual IIPPE Conference; (iii) providing financial support, including support to conference attendance, to students and activists who require such support; and (iv) supporting the activities of the Working Groups. These shall serve as guidelines to the Executive Committee, which may nevertheless allocate financial resources to other ends.

10.2 The Council

The function of the Council shall be to receive the Reports of the EC and to monitor the activities of the EC, upholding the Objects of IIPPE and ensuring that the governing documents are abided by and respected.

The Council shall approve or reject, by majority voting, the Annual Report submitted by the Executive Committee two weeks before the AGM. Rejection of the Annual Report entails the impeachment of the Executive Committee. Announcement of the Council’s decision regarding the Annual Report shall be made at the AGM.

The Council shall be comprised of 11 Members. Four of these will be the Members of the EC plus up to 7 ordinary Council Members. In addition, the Council can appoint up to 2 co-opted Members who will not have voting rights.

The Chairperson of the EC will be responsible for organising the normal activities of the Council during the year.

Any Member of IIPPE may communicate directly to the Council to report any matter of relevance to the responsibilities of the Council. The Council shall deliberate on any such communication and notification of this shall be made to the Membership through appropriate channels

Council Members may attend EC Meetings but will not be allowed to vote.

Official communication to the Council shall be made via its institutional e-mail address which shall be made public on the IIPPE website.

10.3 First IIPPE EC Members

The first IIPPE EC Members are

Chairperson: Ben Fine

Vice Chair: Susan Newman

Treasurer: Kate Bayliss

General Secretary: Dimitris Milonakis

11 Appointment of Executive Committee and Council Members

11.1 Executive Committee

The Officers of the EC shall be elected every three years by majority voting of the IIPPE Members. The election shall take place at the AGM. Alternatively the voting may be conducted through post or electronic means.

Only Members of IIPPE with up-to-date payment of the annual membership fee will be eligible to stand for election to the EC.

The mandate lasts for three years and an Officer may be re-elected three consecutive terms and may not stand for election again until at least one term of office has elapsed.

11.2 Council Members

Council Members will be elected every three years by majority voting of the IIPPE Members.

Only IIPPE Members with up-to-date payment of membership fee may stand and be elected to the Council.

At elections, each Member present at the Meeting shall be assigned four votes and the candidates who receive the greatest number of votes shall be elected.

11.3 Co-opted Council Members

The Council can appoint up to 2 co-opted Members who will not have voting rights.

12 Information for new Officers

The EC and the Council will make available to new Members copies of the Constitution and latest Annual Report and statement of accounts.

13 Retirement and removal of Executive Committee and Council Members

A Member of the EC and / or the Council ceases to hold office if she or he:

Retires by notifying the Council in writing (or electronically)
Is absent from all IIPPE Meetings for one year
Dies
Becomes incapable by reason of mental disorder, illness or injury
Is disqualified by virtue of section 178-180 of the Charities Act 2011 (or any statutory re-enactment of that provision)

In the event of membership ceasing for one of the EC, the remaining Committee Members will co-opt a fourth Member of IIPPE for the remainder of the term and reassign the positions within the EC as they deem appropriate.

In the event of membership ceasing for a Council Member, the position shall remain vacant until the following AGM, at which time an election shall take place to the vacant positions, following procedures analogous to those indicated in Clause 11.

In the event of resignation of two or more Members of the EC, or of disagreement amongst the remaining Members of the EC as to how to reassign the positions following the resignation of one Member, an interim EC shall be nominated by the Council in any way that ensures the endorsement of a majority of half the Council Members plus one.

The EC may be impeached by the Council in the event of malfeasance or gross disrespect of IIPPE’s aims. Impeachment shall require endorsement by six Council Members currently in office and shall be followed by the appointment of an interim EC by the remaining Council Members.

Any interim EC shall limit its activity to undertaking IIPPE’s current business and shall refrain from taking decisions with major strategic political or financial consequences.

A Member of the EC or the Council shall be removed from office if a resolution to remove that Officer is proposed at a General Meeting of the Members called for that purpose and properly convened in accordance with Clause 9 and the resolution is passed by (two thirds) majority.

A resolution to remove an Officer in accordance with this Clause shall not take effect unless the individual concerned has been given at least 14 clear days notice in writing that the resolution is to be proposed specifying the circumstances.

14 Reappointment of IIPPE Officers

Any person who retires as a Member of the EC or the Council by giving notice to the EC is eligible for reappointment. An EC or Council Member who has served for three consecutive terms may not be reappointed for a fourth consecutive term but may be reappointed after an interval of at least three years.

15 Taking of decisions by the EC and the Council

Any decision by the EC and the Council may be taken either:

At a Meeting of these bodies; or
By resolution in writing or electronic form agreed by all of the Members of the EC or the Council (as appropriate) which may comprise either a single document or several documents containing the text of the resolution in like form to each of which one or more Members of the EC or the Council (as appropriate) has signified their agreement

These shall involve democratic procedures along the same lines of decision-making in Meetings in Clause 8 above.

16 Meetings and proceedings of Executive Committee and the Council

16.1 Calling Meetings

Any Member of the EC or the Council may call a Meeting of the Officers.
Subject to that, the Members of the EC or the Council, as appropriate, shall decide how their Meetings are to be called and what notice is required.

16.2 Chairing of Meetings

IIPPE Officers may appoint one of their number to chair their Meetings and may at any time revoke such appointment. If no-one has been so appointed, or if the person appointed is unwilling to preside or is not present within 10 minutes after the time of the Meeting, the Officers present may appoint one of their number to chair that Meeting.

16.3 Procedure at Meetings

(a) No decision shall be taken at a Meeting unless a quorum is present at the time when the decision is taken. The quorum is two IIPPE Officers, or the number nearest to one third of the total number of IIPPE Officers, whichever is greater, or such larger number as the IIPPE Officers may decide from time to time. An IIPPE Officer shall not be counted in the quorum present when any decision is made about a matter upon which he or she is not entitled to vote.

(b) Questions arising at a Meeting shall be decided by a majority of those eligible to vote.

16.4 Participation in Meetings by electronic means

i) A Meeting may be held by suitable electronic means agreed by the IIPPE Officers in which each participant may communicate with all the other participants.

ii) Any IIPPE Officer participating at a Meeting by suitable electronic means agreed by the Officers in which a participant or participants may communicate with all the other participants shall qualify as being present at the Meeting.

iii) Meetings held by electronic means must comply with rules for Meetings, including chairing and the taking of minutes.

17 Keeping of Registers

IIPPE will keep a register of Members and Officers.

18 Minutes

The Executive Committee will keep minutes of all:

i) appointments of Officers;

ii) proceedings at General Meetings;

iii) Meetings of the Executive Committee and the Council including:

a. the names of the Officers present at the Meeting;

b. the decisions made at the Meetings; and

c. where appropriate the reasons for the decisions;

iv) decisions made by the IIPPE Officers otherwise than in Meetings

19 Accounting records, accounts, Annual Reports and returns, register maintenance

(1) The IIPPE Officers must comply with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011 with regard to the keeping of accounting records, to the preparation and scrutiny of statements of accounts, and to the preparation of Annual Reports and returns. The statements of accounts, Reports and returns must be sent to the Charity Commission, regardless of the income of IIPPE, within 10 months of the financial year-end.

(2) IIPPE Officers must comply with their obligation to inform the Commission within 28 days of any change in the particulars of IIPPE entered on the Central Register of Charities.

20 Disputes

If a dispute arises between Members of IIPPE about the validity or propriety of anything done by the Members under this Constitution, and the dispute cannot be resolved by agreement, the parties to the dispute must first try in good faith to settle the dispute by mediation before resorting to litigation.

21 Unforeseen circumstances

Any unforeseen circumstances and/or matters not covered by these Statutes shall be decided by the Council, and then either ratified or overturned at the subsequent AGM by a simple majority. The Council’s decision is binding to all IIPPE bodies until a decision is taken by the AGM, and the latter’s final decision becomes binding to all IIPPE bodies after that.

22 Amendment of Constitution

As provided by Clauses 224-227 of the Charities Act 2011:

(1) This Constitution can only be amended

(a) by resolution agreed in writing by all Members or

(b) by a resolution passed by a 75% majority of the votes cast at a General Meeting of IIPPE Members

(2) Any alteration of Clause 3 (objects), Clause 23 (voluntary winding up or dissolution), this Clause or of any provision where the alteration would provide authorisation for any benefit to be obtained by Officers or Members of IIPPE, requires the prior written consent of the Charity Commission.

(3) A copy of any resolution altering the Constitution must be sent to the Commission within 15 days from the date on which the resolution is passed. The amendment does not take effect until it has been recorded in the Register of Charities.

23 Voluntary winding up or dissolution

(1) IIPPE can be dissolved by resolution of the Members. Any decision to dissolve IIPPE can only be made:

a. At a General Meeting of IIPPE Members called in accordance with Clause 9 (Meetings of Members) of which not less than 14 days notice has been given to those eligible to attend and vote

i. By a resolution passed by a majority of 75% of those voting

ii. By a resolution passed by decision taken without a vote and without an expression of dissent in response to the question put to the General Meeting or by a resolution agreed in writing by all Members of IIPPE

(2) Subject to the payment of all IIPPE’s debts

a. Any resolution for the winding up of IIPPE may contain a provision directing how any remaining assets shall be applied

b. If the resolution does not contain such a provision the IIPPE Officers must decide how any remaining assets shall be applied

c. In either case, the remaining assets must be applied for charitable purposes, the same as or similar to those of IIPPE

(3) IIPPE Officers must observe the requirements of the Dissolution Regulations in applying to the Commission for IIPPE to be removed from the Register of Charities.