Agenda Volume 3 - Methodist Conference

59. Memorials to the Conference
campaigns to aid understanding of the
issues raised in the memorial.
M33 Ethical Banking
The Stamford and Rutland (23/22) Circuit
Meeting (Present: 24. Voting: 23 for, 0
against) notes that it resolved in June 2011
that all churches in the Circuit should seek
to move to ethical banking for church funds
as soon as practically possible.
We believe that the prevailing financial
climate presents an opportune time for
the Methodist Connexion to declare its
commitment to ethical banking – as it
has done already for ethical investments.
We further believe that it is unlikely that
there are any insurmountable difficulties
as Christian Aid moved to the Co-operative
Bank several years ago for all its local and
global transactions.
We therefore propose that the Methodist
Connexion reconsiders where its accounts
are held with a view to moving to a bank
with more clearly defined ethical standards.
Reply
The Conference thanks the Stamford and
Rutland Circuit Meeting for reminding it of
the need to be alert to the ethics of the
providers of services to the Methodist
community.
The Conference notes that it is unlikely
that any bank of other major company
which provides professional services to
the Methodist Church, either connexionally
or locally will never make a decision that
conflicts with the preferences of some
Methodists. The Church does not endorse
every action of every company with which
it does business. The Conference of 2010
acknowledged that the Church’s current
bankers have a better record than many of
their competitors in some areas that have
rightly been of concern to Christians.
Nonetheless, the matter of our main
connexional banking relationship was raised
during the Conference of 2009. Senior
Connexional Team staff have continued
to keep that matter under review. Issues
concerning the range of services that could
be provided and the costs of transferring
the very large number of accounts the
Methodist Church uses have been
considered. The Connexional Team wants to
work entirely in the spirit of this memorial
without compromising the standards of
service and related costs, about which the
wider Connexion also feels strongly.
The memorial mentions “the Methodist
Connexion” which refers to all Methodist
churches, Circuits and Districts, not
merely the accounts administered by the
Methodist Council. There is no requirement
that any Methodist trustee body uses
a particular bank, and the Conference
encourages them to consider the ethical
considerations involved in that.
The Conference therefore encourages all
Methodist bodies to consider the ethical
stance of their bank account providers.
M34 Installation of solar panels on
Methodist property
The Sheffield District Synod (R) (Present:
116. Voting: 84 for, 0 against) urges the
Conference Agenda 2012 793