Opinion

The calls for unity which have coloured the Co-op's vocabulary since Andrew Regan's aborted attempt to take over the CWS will ring out again this weekend. But before they are heard, the roof of the national concert hall in Cardiff will be raised by a chorus of a different kind as 600 co-operators enjoy a resounding victory anthem at their annual congress. Although, in trade terms, the event, a curious concoction of commercial and ideological issues, is unique, it has taken a predictable shape for years. Resolutions designed to maintain the spirit of co-operation, often showing a masochistic tendency to display the Movement's problems to the world, have signalled to the Co-op's sharp end that the consumer voice, in the shape of its membership, wants to be heard. However in truth, despite the large attendance, the congress has little real power as a policymaker where the societies are concerned. But this weekend we are to be treated to several resolutions which, if nothing else, must make it clear to those in power that the rank and file, roused by the Regan experience, seek a more co-ordinated approach to the high street effort ­ with or without a CWS-CRS merger. A call for a special Movement-wide TV advertising and media campaign to reflect a "young, modern image" is on the agenda, while one co-op region is keen to see more co-ordinated marketing nationwide. Perhaps significantly, two of the rallying cries are coming from regions of the CRS, an organisation where, in head office terms at least, observers could be forgiven for thinking the top executives are not exactly singing from the same hymn sheet when it comes to the all-important unification issues. Several societies, in the wake of the Regan bid, have privately consulted the Co-operative Union, seeking advice on how they could strengthen their rule books as a defence against possible future predators. Thus the renewed pleas at Cardiff for unity will reflect that concern. Will this be one occasion when Co-op policymakers cast aside prejudices and take notice of calls from the rostrum?{{NEWS}}