Editing Cooperative (section)

=== Federal or secondary cooperative ===
{{Main|Cooperative Federation}}

In some cases, cooperative societies find it advantageous to form [[cooperative federation]]s in which all of the members are themselves cooperatives. Historically, these have predominantly come in the form of cooperative wholesale societies, and cooperative unions. Cooperative federations are a means through which cooperative societies can fulfill the sixth [[Rochdale Principles|Rochdale Principle]], [[cooperation among cooperatives]], with the [[International Cooperative Alliance|ICA]] noting that "Cooperatives serve their members most effectively and strengthen the cooperative movement by working together through local, regional and international structures."
{{See also|List of Co-operative Federations}}

==== Cooperative union ====
A second common form of cooperative federation is a cooperative union, whose objective (according to Gide) is "to develop the spirit of solidarity among societies and... in a word, to exercise the functions of a government whose authority, it is needless to say, is purely moral." [[Co-operatives UK]] and the [[International Cooperative Alliance]] are examples of such arrangements.

==== Cooperative political movements ====
{{anchor|Cooperative Party}}
In some countries with a strong cooperative sector, such as the UK, cooperatives may find it advantageous to form political groupings to represent their interests. The British [[Co-operative Party]], the Canadian [[Cooperative Commonwealth Federation]] and [[United Farmers of Alberta]] are prime examples of such arrangements.

===== UK =====
The [[British cooperative movement]] formed the [[Co-operative Party]] in the early 20th century to represent members of [[consumers' cooperative]]s in Parliament, which was the first of its kind. The Co-operative Party now has a permanent electoral pact with the [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]] meaning someone cannot be a member if they support a party other than Labour. [[Plaid Cymru]] also run a credit union that is constituted as a co-operative, called the 'Plaid Cymru Credit Union'.<ref name="UCPCCU">{{cite web|url=http://www.ucpccu.org/|title=Plaid Cymru Credit Union website|work=ucpccu.org|access-date=22 February 2014|archive-date=29 March 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140329093402/http://www.ucpccu.org/|url-status=live}}</ref> UK cooperatives retain a strong market share in [[Co-op (supermarket)|food retail]], insurance, banking, funeral services, and the travel industry in many parts of the country, although this is still significantly lower than other business models.<ref>Ian Clarke, (2000) "Retail power, competition and local consumer choice in the UK grocery sector", European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 34 Iss: 8, pp.975 – 1002</ref>

Former leader of the British Labour Party [[Jeremy Corbyn]] has publicly expressed support for worker cooperatives.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.thenews.coop/123247/topic/politics/jeremy-corbyns-two-key-actions-co-ops-take/|title=Jeremy Corbyn's two key actions for co-ops to take|date=16 October 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190531201241/https://www.thenews.coop/123247/topic/politics/jeremy-corbyns-two-key-actions-co-ops-take/|archive-date=31 May 2019|url-status=dead}}</ref>