23/02/10

By Andrew Holt

Five days paid leave for volunteering, more mutuals, co-operatives and credit unions and the right of the voluntary sector to campaign are at the heart of an election manifesto, launched by the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) today.

Stuart Etherington, chief executive of NCVO, set out his vision of the "good society" and the roles the voluntary sector and government should play to make this reality to more than 650 delegates at the body's flagship annual conference in London.

As the UK's largest umbrella body representing the views of more than 7,500 charities, NCVO's manifesto is an important document for all political parties.

Etherington said: "I believe our organisations really do make a difference. We can provide a different approach and different solutions to the challenges we all face. But we cannot sit back and wait for politicians and business to come to us for those solutions.

"It simply won't happen. Instead, it is more important than ever that we define what we want our society to look like and say what role we can play in achieving that."

He called for all workers to be offered five days paid leave each year to carry out volunteering roles as well as greater use of alternative banking models such as mutuals, co-operatives and credit unions to ensure people have fair and adequate access to financial services.

On campaigning, he said: "Campaigning and advocacy have always been at the heart of our sector. We have driven social change on equalities, child protection and climate change, to name just a few.

"I believe that our willingness and ability to speak out when we see that something is wrong, is more important than ever. How people and communities cope in the coming years is down to us, through our work and through the demands we make of our politicians."

Other key manifesto asks included:

-For a Robin Hood Tax of 0.05 per cent on banking transactions to raise money to protect public services, fight poverty and tackle climate change.

-Protection of the legal right to protest and campaign, especially in Parliament Square

-A new Community Day bank holiday

-Local assets, such as community centres and town halls, to be transferred to communities where they would otherwise stand empty and neglected.

The manifesto comprises of six basic themes: climate change; strong democracy; good public services; an active society; financial security and fairness for all; and an enabling environment.