Time to reinstate the MMOC AGM at the National Rally

[jagnut66]

For the last few years, since our new board took over, the AGM has almost disappeared behind closed doors.
It is held at a private venue, when and where only a select few (representatives) are able / invited to attend.
Last year, seemingly almost to obscure it further, it was held on ‘Drive it Day’, which made it even less appealing / convenient for ordinary members to attend.
They state that the accounts are published for all to see but this is not the point.
Any discussion about the club is supposed to happen at the AGM, in the open where board member and the chairman can be held accountable for their actions or inaction.
This can hardly happen when the general membership of the club is effectively excluded and decisions almost made out of sight and behind their backs.
The MMOC is meant to be a club of enthusiasts run by and for its members, this is increasingly giving the impression that this is no longer happening.
I personally think that the MMOC is a great club but it appears at present to be heading down the road to disunity.
Therefore I think it is high time that the AGM was held in the public arena once more, for all to see and listen to at the National Rally, where actions can be scrutinised and the members, as a whole, can decide whether the action of those that are supposed to be organising this club for us are justifiable or not.
And whether the current board / chairman are re-elected or not.
From what I recall when the AGM was held during the National Rally it was well attended by the membership, so there is no excuse there.
And it cannot be said it is too difficult to organise, it was done well enough in the past.
Time for the MMOC board to cease appearing to be, rightly or wrongly, a closed shop.
This is an membership based enthusiast club not a private company…..
If we want to continue to attract new (and younger) members it is time to stop the rot and for the MMOC to be seen to be run by its members for its members once more.

Best wishes,
Mike.

[Bill_qaz]

Mike what do you mean by "stop the rot"
Can you elaborate on what you think is wrong other than the agm date and location?
Wouldn't the Minor Matters be a better platform to raise your concerns as the forum has a very limited readership.

[jagnut66]

My opinion, based on what I've seen and what others have said to me, is set out above and is, I think, fairly self explanatory.
I have posted this, both here and on Facebook, as I believe it needs saying in public, not behind closed doors in a private conversation, so that the whole membership can have their chance to view it, digest it and have their say.
If that sets me up to shot down by a few then so be it.
Best wishes,
Mike.

[unclealec]

My twopenceworth for what it's worth (2p presumably) is:
I am an uninvolved member, and intend staying that way. Therefore I am happy to leave the running of the MMOC to those who are prepared to put the time in. Were I prepared to play a part in running the club I would feel better placed to criticise.

I am heavily involved with another owners' club and fully appreciate the time, expense, and effort required to volunteer for an executive role in a club.

Owners' clubs are a vital part of the classic car scene and should be supported financially and by taking part in events organised on members' behalf by the executive. I am woefully lacking in the latter in the case of the MMOC, largely due to clashes with commitments on my other club's platform, but hope one day to be able to take part in something.

My other club has considered merging the AGM and National Rally but decided not to; the majority view was that members attend the National Rally to enjoy themselves, not to attend meetings.

Whilst I can think of a couple of things not to my liking about the MMOC, they are petty, subjective, and to voice my opinion would be tantamount to offering to replace whomsoever came up with the standing arrangement. You know what, let them carry on, with my thanks and appreciation.

[sparesman]

THe Club AGM is not held behind closed doors . It is open to any paid up club member to attend and is well publicised in Minor Matters , on this website an the MMOC facebook group

[Bill_qaz]

My opinion, based on what I've seen and what others have said to me, is set out above and is, I think, fairly self explanatory.
I have posted this, both here and on Facebook, as I believe it needs saying in public, not behind closed doors in a private conversation, so that the whole membership can have their chance to view it, digest it and have their say.
If that sets me up to shot down by a few then so be it.
Best wishes,
Mike.

The whole membership will not be reached via here and Facebook, hence I suggested Minor Matter if you have an issue.
Makes no odds to me I'm happy with how it is

[Chief]

I've been a club member since 2002, and still have yet to make it to a National Rally, or any club events for that matter, so whether in private or public the AGM is something I tend to ignore.

[geoberni]

For the last few years, since our new board took over, the AGM has almost disappeared behind closed doors.
It is held at a private venue, when and where only a select few (representatives) are able / invited to attend.
Last year, seemingly almost to obscure it further, it was held on ‘Drive it Day’, which made it even less appealing / convenient for ordinary members to attend.
They state that the accounts are published for all to see but this is not the point.
Any discussion about the club is supposed to happen at the AGM, in the open where board member and the chairman can be held accountable for their actions or inaction.
This can hardly happen when the general membership of the club is effectively excluded and decisions almost made out of sight and behind their backs.


Best wishes,
Mike.

I think this statement is to a certain degree behind the times and not keeping up with recent changes.

I speak as someone who did/does have an issue with some aspects of the club since joining in 2017, for example the Minutes of the AGM always being held for a year for approval before being released.
However, this was one aspect that was changed at the 2025 AGM and those minutes have been available on the Members Area for quite a few months.

I attended the AGM this year, as a Member, my Drive It Day drive was the 95 mile round trip to the venue.
I was awarded the Drive It Day prize for the furthest travelled MM/SII for my efforts.

The question of the AGM and the National Rally was raised at the AGM and recorded as follows:

A request for the AGM and Branch Liaison meetings to be held at the National Rally
was received, from member Philip Cowling and has also been suggested by other
members.

Discussion involved the pros and cons of holding the AGM at the National Rally,
amongst the club membership present there was a clear agreement that people
attend the National Rally to look at cars, participate in events and walk around
talking to friends, old and new.

Two options were presented – to hold the AGM and Branch Liaison at the National
Rally, or to hold it at as a dedicated event. After a good debate it was agreed,
unanimously, by a show of hands that the AGM and Branch Liaison should be an
event on its own and not incorporated at the National Rally.

It was also agreed unanimously by those present that the next meeting will take
place, at a venue to be determined, on 10 May 2026.

As I've already said, these Minutes are available over in the Members Area.

I was the only person to arrive specifically for the AGM, all others present had already been there all morning for the Branch Liaison Meetings.
I was one of the unanimous show of hands for keeping it separate simply because it is quite a few hours of meetings which means those taking part cannot be available to organise or attend other activities taking place at the National Rally.
The AGM is open to all, the date and time are published well in advance, and if you read the minutes you will see that there is a possibility of future AGMs being livestreamed, if a venue can be found that can support such connection.

The club organisation isn't perfect, but like anything else it can only be changed by working together.
Club Spares for example; after 35 years doing it single handed, Bryan has quite rightly given up much of it to concentrate on the rarer items, but all the rest is currently in storage because nobody else has stepped forward.

This is an membership based enthusiast club not a private company…..
If we want to continue to attract new (and younger) members it is time to stop the rot and for the MMOC to be seen to be run by its members for its members once more.

So are you putting yourself forward for a position at the next AGM on 10th May 2026.
Are you able to put it in your diary to attend?

[ndevans]

I've usually found MMOC officials very visible and in plentiful supply at the National Rally, and usually willing to discuss any issues face to face, as long as they are not tied up managing the event, so any member not able to get to the AGM has the opportunity to raise concerns at the Rally anyway.

[simmitc]

In the close to 40 years in which I have been a member of the MMOC, I can recall the AGM being held in various locations and at various times of the year. In all that time, the venue for the AGM was nearly always NOT at the National Rally. It was tried at the NR for just a couple of years, but for reasons already listed by others above, reverted to a separate event. Holding the AGM at the NR was a trial, the democratic conclusion of which was that it should not continue.

The date for the AGM in 2026 has already been published. The venue is hoped to be at the Mini Plant near Oxford, with a visit to Nuffield Place the day before. Full details will be in Minor Matters. The AGM has always been open to all paid up members.

The date for the 2025 AGM was set and published well before the date for Drive-it Day was announced. For those who use Minors as every day cars, the date makes no difference. To help avoid future clashes with other events, the FBHVC has published dates for Drive-It day for the next few years.

The MMOC is run by the members for the members, organised democratically through an elected committee. Any member is able to send requests and proposals to both the committee and the AGM. The Club is the leading organisation supporting the preservation and use of the Morris Minor and next year will be celebrating it's 50th birthday with plenty of plans for events and developments to take the Club forward for the next 50 years. Anyone who is prepared to volunteer and help run the Club or specific events will find plenty to do - please contact the Secretary to offer your services.

[philipkearney]

I followed this discussion yesterday over on the FB page and note that the two statements made here by Mike are exactly those made on the FB page also. I never thought that FB forums were the place for those sort of discussions - as suggested here, Minor Matters would be better as it is presented for all club members to see. I note that MMOC has c8000 ish members worldwide and yet 30,000+ members of the FB page, so perhaps discussions concerning the club should be focused toward club members and not randoms who join a FB page but don't pay a membership fee and thus should have no role in discussing club matters.

That aside, there are two key points that Mike has raised. The first one is should the AGM be aligned with the rally. As noted elsewhere, this was put forward as a motion at this years AGM (which I attended, as did Mike), it was discussed and then unanimously voted by members to keep the two events separate. I will be attending the 2026 AGM and would be happy to see it raised and discussed again but I'd expect the same outcome. As for the notion it is somehow not a public event and is hidden behind closed doors, I completely disagree. It is openly advertised and members are encouraged to attend. Indeed at this AGM, I suggested going back to a hybrid style event with an online option, to allow more members to attend and I think was going to be looked at. although possibly difficult to manage, member interaction is encouraged. Being involved in organising branch AGM's, experience suggests you will get low levels of turnout, members just don' t often come along to these things lest they get a job to do.

The other key point/suggestion that Mike makes is that there some sort of 'rot' in the club that needs stopped. This was questioned on FB as has been here by Bill, but I have yet to see any answer or clarification on either forum. What is this rot ? What elements do you disagree with ? Personally speaking, I am very happy with the club and being involved with a branch and liaison, I appreciate the huge amount of work that the committee and other volunteers do and also know that there are very few willing volunteers. Therefore, any specific issues should be raised either as an AOCB at the next AGM or explained more fully in Minor Matters for all (paying) members to consider rather than make broad, sweeping (and unjustified) statements about rot and lack of scrutiny. A healthy discourse is essential for all clubs but it needs to be open and targeted to club members.

[jagnut66]

I have attended the separate AGM in recent years and still don't consider that the 30 to 40 members that attend can truly represent the membership as a whole.
Obviously overseas members will find it hard if not impossible to attend, however there is still a very large membership base here in the UK.
If I am able to attend in May I have no problem with doing so, like others I can't say for sure as yet, as 'life / circumstances' may get in the way.
The reason the posts look the same is exactly what the above poster suggested, I posted on both here and Facebook at the same time to try and maximise the people it reached.
This is because, as has been mentioned on this site before, the forum seems to attract fewer and fewer members / discussion these days. Partly because Facebook has overtaken it.
I still consider my original post to be pretty much self explanatory, so I'm not going to sit here and spend my entire evening on the internet justifying why my opinion differs to others, we'll just have to agree to differ.
Best wishes,
Mike.

[jagnut66]

To put some out of their misery……..

“time to stop the rot”

Is simply an expressive comment, which I’ve seen used many times before, used to emphasise a particular point, in this case the lack of a truly accessible AGM (IMO to all members).
It has no actual meaning in itself, well not to me anyway, outside of the context in which it is used.

The reason I’ve not commented on this before is firstly, I’m surprised you didn’t work that out for yourselves, as you must have seen it used before as well, and secondly, as it was just meant as a form of expression I didn’t see the need nor point.

Oh, and I will copy and paste this onto Facebook as well, before someone comments that they’ve seen the same post there…..
Best wishes,
Mike.

[JoW]

Been lurking here for a few years first post. hope I get it right. Looks like Mike has a different opinion to most others and cant face being wrong./ I ask what does he do for the club apart from whinge about nothing?

[ndevans]

I think the reasons for not holding the AGM at the rally have been explained clearly enough. I can't honestly see how an AGM at the rally is any more "accessible" to more members than if held at another location and time. By all means write to the Committee and to Minor Matters and raise your concerns.
Personally I think this thread has run its course and should be locked.

[Chief]

I ask what does he do for the club apart from whinge about nothing?

He's an active member of the forum, and provides helpful advice to enquiries about maintaining Minors like others here, and while it's true he could post the same information solely on FB or the other Minor forum, if we don't use the forum, we'd likely lose the forum, so he actively supports the club by being here showing the need for the forum.

“time to stop the rot”

I'll admit, I read your initial post as though you had something specific in mind that you hadn't mentioned in your post with that expression as opposed to the context of the AGM.

[simmitc]

Personally I think this thread has run its course and should be locked.

I am inclined to agree. It is legitimate for Mike to question the venue, even if some of his other statements could be described as unsubstantiated. The responses have explored alternative views. The debate has shown that the Club does allow freedom of expression, and democracy has decided that the AGM should not be held at the National Rally. Let's look forward to some great events in 2026. Meanwhile, I shall lock this topic.