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Andrew Coburn wrote: > Meantime the issue is all but polarised around the flat-rate versus > banded issue. This is unfortunate as it seemed to me that much of the discontent with the proposed new system was about the detail - particularly the detail of the point at which an information worker is or is not 'low paid' - as opposed to being discontent with the principle of the system itself. The Hon. Treasurer has said that the figure of 17,000 which was arrived at for the proposal will be under review and certainly could be subject to change - figures of 20,000 and 22,000 were mentioned during the debate at the AGM. Unfortunately that will have to wait for next year, but it, and the other issues of detail, do not seem to me a good reason to condemn the whole proposal. To me, it seems sensible to try the new system and fine-tune it over the next couple of years rather than condemn it out of hand. (After all a motion for return to the old system or for a new system can be put to next year's AGM.) The new proposal, at least according to figures we were given, will reduce everyone's subscription by a small amount and will have the enormous merit of working against the leakage of members through failure to renew. With the alternative system, to which we shall be returned if the vote goes against the motion, numbers of you will not me members in March 2005 and a percentage of those will never bother to rejoin again. While the new flat-rate system will cure this "symptom", I do agree with other writers that it is important for CILIP to realise the message underlying member leakage: many members and potential members do not see a clear set of benefits from membership. I believe the benefits exist - CILIP has to focus on marketing them. Andrew Coburn also wrote: > Keeping banding would allow the matter of deduction from pay to be > pursued. I think this is something of a red herring as the issue could be pursued whichever route is chosen. I suspect that the time taken to negotiate this through the Unions, etc would mean that any benefits will not be short-term, and so will not work against the loss of members in 2005 or even 2006. Chris Armstrong National Councillor Information Automation Limited