Hansard

I welcome this opportunity to highlight the campaign for recognition of the Fenwick Weavers Society and its contribution to the development of the co-operative model. I welcome to the gallery guests from the modern Fenwick Weavers Society. I mention in particular lain MacDonald, the former director-general of the International Co-operative Alliance.

Because some of the founders were not available on 14 March 1761, today is actually the 250th anniversary of the first signatures on the charter that set up the Fenwick Weavers Society. To echo those events, and with the society’s agreement, the First Minister today signed a copy of the new Fenwick charter. Members who will not be attending Monday’s event will have an opportunity to sign the charter after the debate.

When we last debated this subject, the campaign was getting into its stride. The twa Johns—John Smith and John McFadzean—and the Fenwick committee, were working hard to draw attention to the events of 1761. Now, almost three years later, the 250th anniversary is upon us and the campaign has made great progress. Unfortunately, as members might be aware, the Co-operative Group overlooked Fenwick in its current advertising campaign. I am sure that those of us who are attending Monday’s event will want to take that up with the group’s representatives.

The campaign has succeeded because at its core is real respect for the history of Fenwick and of Scotland. There is also a commitment to implementing the principles that were set out in the original charter that was signed in 1761, and that is reflected in the modern charter, which opens with the words:

“We, the undersigned, honour the actions of the sixteen weavers of Fenwick who, in the sanctuary provided by Fenwick Church, put their names to a charter, which set up the Fenwick Weavers Society in a co-operative venture on 14th March 1761.”

The initiatives to mark this important anniversary include the development of a village heritage trail, which demonstrates how Fenwick’s history reflects wider social and economic changes. The trail illustrates the context in which the Fenwick Weavers Society was born and operated. It is a valuable reminder that when people face challenges, hardship or oppression, they can respond positively—and with some ingenuity, into the bargain.

Over the past 250 years, the legacy of the Fenwick weavers has played a significant part in shaping our world. We can trace the idea of a formal co-operative, founded on a clear statement of values and principles, as it spread from Fenwick throughout Scotland to the UK and further afield. We know that in 1777, a co-operative was set up in Govan, and then others were set up in communities all over the west of Scotland. By 1830, there were 300 co-operative societies in existence.

David Dale, the founder of the New Lanark mill and the father-in-law and business partner of Robert Owen, was undoubtedly a factor in the spread of the Fenwick idea. Dale was born in Stewarton, only four miles from Fenwick, and was just 22 years old when the Fenwick charter was signed. He was a weaver to trade and, together with some Fenwick residents, he was a member of the Secession Church. As a pastor in that church, he engaged with communities all over the west of Scotland. David Dale undoubtedly valued the democratic and co-operative developments that were taking place around him. It was his decision to put New Lanark under Robert Owen’s management that gave Owen the platform to promote his ideas.

By the mid-19th century, with an ever-growing number of co-operatives, the movement was ready to move on to the next stage. At that point, not only does Rochdale enter the story, but quickly thereafter, so too does the development of co-operative wholesale societies in both England and Scotland. By that time, the Fenwick Weavers Society was winding down as power looms in places such as New Lanark replaced the weavers. Despite that, Kilmarnock and Loudoun continued to play their part in the development of co-operatives, with societies in Kilmarnock, Galston, Newmilns and Crosshouse all active in the Scottish Co-operative Wholesale Society.

Given that history, it is right that over the next few days Fenwick should be the centre of attention for the co-operative movement. The modern-day society has succeeded in attracting leading figures of today’s worldwide co-operative movement. I look forward to joining the society in welcoming Pauline Green, the president of the International Co-operative Alliance, together with Charles Gould, the current director-general, and the many other guests who will join the local members of the society on Monday in Fenwick to mark the contribution that was made by those 16 pioneers. It is particularly fitting that Mr Lezamiz of the Mondragon corporation in the Basque country will also join us on Monday. Other members may wish to take up this point, but I see Mondragon as being a further stage of development in the co-operative model, and one that we should certainly be looking to bring home to Scotland.

With its early growth built on manufacturing, Mondragon has developed a wide range of co-operatives, including its own financial and educational institutions. Scotland could certainly learn from that as we rebuild our economy in the wake of the banking crisis.

In 2009, Scotland celebrated its year of homecoming to mark the 250th anniversary of the birth of Robert Burns. 2011 marks a year of homecoming for the co-operative movement, as it revisits the true roots of the movement: the point at which the revolution really began when 16 weavers in a small Ayrshire village signed up for what is now recognised as the world’s first formal co-operative.

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