Daniella details

Go here for the latest details of Daniella Radice's campaign to become the Green Mayor of Bristol http://twitter.com/Green_Mayor. Daniella will get my first preference vote, not least because she has been the most forthcoming so far with her policies. My second preference vote is most likely to go to George Ferguson, though I will be monitoring the election closer to the time to see who is most likely to be in first and second place after the first round of counting.

City Conference

The Green Party Autumn Conference will be held at the Council House in Bristol from 7-10 September this year. Included will be policy debate on: working hours; economic democracy; making corporations responsible; international law of ecocide; end of life palliative care; animal racing; Aarhus Convention and environmental information and participation; natural resources; nuclear waste; libel law reform; crime prevention and justice; economics...

On the draft timetable the Conference Opening Speech will be from Daniella Radice, the Green Party Candidate in the Bristol Mayoral election followed by a speech from the Party’s newly elected Leader who will be introduced by Caroline Lucas MP, outgoing Green Party Leader.

Details via: http://www.greenparty.org.uk/conference.html

 

Daniella debate

Debate about Green Mayoral Candidate Daniella Radice on this post story eg by FOX_Joe - “Out to lunch bunch of daydreamers! Living in a bubble would be wonderful, but we don't. The most out of sync with reality 'political' party; in short communists with a slightly better education.”

My response: @ FOX_Joe - "Living in a bubble would be wonderful, but we don't."

Actually we do live in a bubble of sorts - the biosphere on our planet that provides all the resources that sustain our economy and society, has to take in all our wastes and pollutants and is the basis of our lives. Why call the people who plan to live sustainably and fairly in this bubble 'daydreamers' and unrealistic and not those who are squandering finite resources, blighting the world for future generations, building an economy that mainly benefits super-rich, corrupt and unethical bankers and their establishment politician and media friends and not general wellbeing...Your assessement is upside down FOX_Joe. Obviously I'm a green and so support Daniella and her policies but can you deny their rationale?
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Copies of some further contributions I've made to the debate, which is pretty lively:

@ Richard34 - Daniella is proposing to go much further with devolving power than the current Neighbourhood Partnerships. She advocates creating - and Mayoral working with - democratically elected neighbourhood councils, which of course we dont currently have.

Current transport plans are hardly revolutionary and many aspects of the 'Greater Bristol Bus Network' and bus rapid transit - especially using bendy buses - have rightly been heavily critcised. There's been a lot of talk about public transport improvements in Bristol for decades and we have still got a lot of problems and a long way to go - thus the Greens proposals to create a major transport hub for local bus and train interchange at Plot 6 next to Temple Meads station and to develop the local economy in such a way as to improve local job creation, local shops and community facilities such that the need to travel long distances is cut.

On education Daniella will lobby the government to transfer the secretary of state's powers over free schools and academies to the Mayor, not to the council ie central government dictates are being opposed and local democracy favoured.
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@ BCFC Finker - ok, still nothing on policies or principles, so no genuine substance to your comments. And dont forget that people will have two votes in the Mayoral election, one for first and one for second preference. People can therefore vote both with their heart and with their head. This may cause some interesting voting patterns, especially with the Lib Dems and Tories struggling due to the persistent failures of the Coalition Govt.
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“@SouthvilleDav - Greens like Daniella and I have long been campaigning aginst biofuels - they simply aren't green at all - see http://tinyurl.com/88tf85o As for what you say on solar energy, you are absolutely right - and I'd go further and say that we should be investing in solar to grow the industry in this country so we can supply as much as we can for ourselves.
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@ Richard34 - you are arguing against greater democracy and against democracy being closer to people instead of remote and in the hands of a few eg a single individual as Mayor. Its partly because democracy is not in people's hands in their neighbourhoods that voters have become disillusioned and politicians self-serving and unethical. There's nothing woolly about what Greens are proposing on this as neither you or anyone else have been unclear on what the plans are.

The current bus station is clearly badly located and our whole public transport system needs a redesign, including creating a proper integrated transport hub at Termple Meads, which is beginning to go through a redesign process anyway. We need to be much more ambitious with our integrated transport planning or we will never make a dent in serious problems of congestion, delay, air pollution, carbon emissions...Current plans wont make a dent in these problems and in fact will make some of them worse!!

Thinking that the current education system is 'wonderful' is a very big mistake. Conservatives once told us we needed GCSEs for instance and now have gone full circle to tell us we dont need them we need the old O'levels or similar!! Greens are not just talking about a transfer of power from central government to the Mayor but to the Mayor working in a partnership with neighbourhood councils and the parents, teachers, governors and pupils/students themselves given that the system is for them and their community not for ideologues in any political party, certainly in a remote central government. Lets have some parent, pupil and people power in the system.

Green Councillors want to...

Protect Public Services. Regulating banks and tax avoiders must come before cuts that will damage the lives of everyone.

Create more green jobs in Bristol. The Green New Deal creates jobs, and brings fuel and food security. Bristol, with its high tech expertise, can deliver.

Promote the Local Economy. Encourage local trading networks, making the city more self-reliant. Global mass-retailers are bad news for the local economy.

Support public transport, cycling and walking Public transport needs to be cheap, regular, direct and easy to use. Priorities: a Temple Meads hub, smart cards, real time information, plus a safe network of pedestrian and cycle routes, and a general 20mph speed limit.

Protect our Green spaces. Selling them would be unsustainable, regressive, unprofitable ( and generally stupid! )

Provide Homes: We can increase housing stock by redeveloping our 7000 unused buildings and houses in Bristol, and using brown field sites. But we need mechanisms to give local people priority.

A good local state school for every child. Young people should expect a high standard of education close to home and right for their talents. Academies and PFI rarely provide that.

Health. All our policies encourage good physical and mental health. But when things go wrong, we want accessible health centres providing a range of services. We want to work with a stronger (not a privatised) NHS, to support less able people and their carers in the community. We'll oppose any non-essential mass-medication (eg fluoridation of water).

Promote reuse and recycling of resources: Bristol needs alternatives to the 'throwaway' economy, promoting repair and reuse together with locally based plans for reducing waste, litter, and flytipping.

Save energy. We support insulation and energy saving as the best ways to reduce our CO2 output. Nuclear is not an option. Solar, tidal and wind are.

We need a progressive voice in Bristol politics. Just one more Green councillor will give us the influence of a party group on the council. Green councillors will work hard for what matters: a sustainable economy, decent public services and a good quality of life for all. And if you don't like us, our 'recall' system lets you get rid of us!

Why vote Green? Part Nine

Greens work to maximise efficiency, whether energy, water, transport use or other resources. Its why we would insulate all homes free of charge (warming your homes, saving you money, efficiently and rapidly cutting fuel use and carbon emissions, creating thousands of local jobs). Its why we drew up the Home Energy Conservation Act. Its why we want more effective and wide-ranging door-to-door recycling systems. Its why we would cut excessive mileage allowances paid by some councils and Govt departments. Reducing waste makes sense at all sorts of levels: giving value for money; making effective use of resources; reducing pressures on communities and on the environment. Given the results of this online survey http://voteforpolicies.org.uk/, which over a quarter of a million people have completed, the chances are that you agree that the Greens policies are best - we are in first place with over 24% of the vote (click to enlarge image top left for details).

Making Bristol an even better place: pass on the video

If you could change Bristol what would you change? See the Bristol Greens video on making Bristol an even better place below - and pass on details to your friends and family http://tinyurl.com/betterbristol .

Green election leaflet for Bristol East

Copy of my general election leaflet (click to enlarge):

No Clegg 'bounce' here - on policies!!

Green Party policies are still by far the most popular in this 'blind' online test. I reported on this policy test after 91,000 votes had been cast but before the first 'leaders debate' and the Greens then had a very clear lead. Now, after nearly 141,000 votes and after the first 'leaders debate' and despite the Clegg/Lib Dem bounce up in the polls, Greens still have almost a ten point lead (see screenshot, click to enlarge).

Green Party manifesto launch: some links

*Election 2010 Peter Walker - Greens promise tax rise to boost public spending
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2010/apr/15/general-election-green-party-manifesto
"The best outcome for the party would be to hold significant bargaining power in a hung parliament, where any Green MPs would offer their support on a "case by case basis".

*Election 2010 John Vidal – Green Party’s radical new policies would be a boon to the new parliament
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2010/apr/15/green-party-radical-policy-parliament
"The policy wonks in other parties should start taking them seriously."

*Manifesto dissection by way of annotated policy guide
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/interactive/2010/apr/15/green-party-manifesto-2010-policy-guide

*Slick launch – Election blog
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/blog/2010/apr/15/green-party-launch-oliver-burkeman
"There are multiple camera crews and TV lights and constant, clicking shutters, and a manifesto document with graphic design that rivals Labour's and outshines the Tories'. There are several designer suits in evidence, and very little facial hair."

*The Green Party: A manifesto for a low key life – Michael White
"So it's a pleasure to read a document that starts off from the proposition that work should be satisfying, that life should be quieter and fairer, that quality time matters."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/blog/2010/apr/15/green-party-tax-quality-life
Also mention cloud of volcanic ash that threatened our media coverage, along with the UK skyline

*And a minute by minute blog:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/blog/2010/apr/15/general-election-2010-leaders-debates

*The Times
Green Party launches its business as usual alternative manifesto - Laura Dixon
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/election_2010/article7098748.ece
"While environmental issues are still key — with pledges to invest heavily in public transport and nationalise the rail system — the party is also keen to also present itself as the party of social reform."

*Much BBC online coverage. Here are two items:
Greens pledge for a fair society
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/election_2010/8623197.stm
Manifesto watch: Green Party
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/election_2010/8622742.stm
"The fact that some of Fleet Street's finest had made the journey to the South Coast shows how seriously the party is being taken these days."

*Daily Telegraph Two articles with embedded video footage, focus of coverage on tax rises
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/green-party/7593669/Green-Party-election-manifesto-sets-out-73bn-of-tax-rises.html

*Mirror:
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/latest/2010/04/15/green-party-urges-fairer-society-115875-22188005/

Only Green

Today sees this website go live: http://www.onlygreen.org.uk/. Here you can: see the Greens Party Election Broadcast; you can personalise it and email it to your friends; you and your friends can visit the site and not only look at our key policies but take a Policy Matchmaker test to see how close you are to the Green Party.

The key concerns of older people

Copy of my letter of reply to Bristol Older People's Forum: Many thanks for your recent letter seeking my views as a general election candidate on the Pensioner’s Manifesto, recently published by the National Pensioners’ Convention. You identify six main areas of concern: the state pension level; the shambolic system of social care for older people; the regressive council tax; disparities in free local transport between England and the rest of the UK; lack of priority given to tackling prevalent ageism and unfair discrimination on grounds of older age; and the increasing problem of fuel poverty amongst older people. I’m very happy to give you my views and the policies of the Green Party on each issue.

In the last few years I’ve lost my elderly father in law, who had a stroke, and my elderly mother in law, who suffered dementia. Being very close to them and having first hand knowledge of how the NHS and the care home system unfairly and at times negligently dealt with them and the family I feel more strongly than ever about ageism and the lack of priority afforded to tackling it. I’m sad to say that many families share my experiences. Discrimination and poor service for older people suffering strokes and dementia have been widely reported. Older people need and deserve protection against discrimination whether in employment or in the provision of goods and services. The Green Party supports legislation against age discrimination, and would ensure that EC law in this area is properly implemented. We also demand appropriate housing, benefits and health and social care provision, and we will work to ensure that we have good public services that provide properly for older people, ensuring respect and dignity for all.

The full state pension for a single pensioner is only £95.25, a massive decline since the link with earnings was broken by the Tory government in 1979. Many pensioners, especially women, don't even get a full state pension. The Green Party would introduce a Citizen's Pension that would pay pensioners a liveable amount, without means testing and would be linked to the rise in average earnings. Pensioners should not have to leap through the hoops of complicated and demeaning means tests in order to get a decent pension. We believe that we all owe older people a decent standard of living without demeaning means tests. The foundation of doing so is a proper state pension for all.

The Green Party has a plan for rebuilding the economy so that it delivers for people, but also operates within environmental limits. This plan is called the Green New Deal - a £45 billion investment to create 1 million jobs and lay the foundations for a sustainable and fair society. Our plan includes decent pensions and free social care for older people, creating 60,000 jobs. It provides for free insulation for all homes, schools and hospitals to reduce bills and tackle fuel poverty and the avoidable winter deaths that go with it – and this would create 80,000 jobs.

The Green New Deal also includes investment in a major expansion of public transport: doubling the size of the bus fleet through an investment of £3 billion to buy 30,000 new buses and create 70,000 jobs; providing a further £2 billion to subsidise bus fares and get new services operational; bringing the railway system back into public ownership and spending £2 billion on new track and rolling stock, and on urban tram schemes - together creating 20,000 jobs; reducing UK rail fares by one third to bring them in line with the European average through a £3 billion subsidy.

Greens are opposed to the regressive council tax and want to replace it with a system of Land Value Taxation (LVT, previously known as Community Ground Rent). In the short term we would support any reform of the council tax that reduces unfairness and improves its relationship to ability to pay. We would precede the introduction of land value tax with some land value tax pilots. LVT rates will be set at a local level. The valuation would be of the land alone, exempting all buildings on it, recent and future improvements to it, or indeed minerals extracted from it, which would be separately taxed. LVT would therefore not be a tax on the rent of buildings, the value of crops, manufactured products or the product of other forms of work.

I’ve done my best to supply you with principles and policies – and where possible some figures – directly related to your six main issues. If you require further information please dont hesitate to contact me. Further information is available on both the local and national Green Party websites (details below). You will find a record of my campaigning, before, during and after the election, on my blog...

http://www.greenparty.org.uk/

http://www.bristolgreenparty.org.uk/

Bristol East Parliamentary Candidate: Video Blog

In the run up to the election, WinkBall.com reporters ask me to sum up in a few minutes what I stand for as Parliamentary Candidate for Bristol East. Here's the result.

Greens are about all issues and how they interconnect

Great article here (and reproduced below) by Jenny Jones, Green Party London Assembly member and longstanding senior figure in the party. She is right to say that Greens address all issues and how they interconnect and interrelate....you would not be able to build a sustainable society, reconciling the economic and social with the environmental, otherwise!!

There are many shades of Green:

It's disappointing to see someone of Leo Hickman's stature reinforcing old stereotypes. His assertion that the Greens are a "one-issue" party is plainly wrong and his reasoning – that "the clue's in the name" – doesn't entirely stack up.

Let's think about this for a moment. Suppose there was a party called... oh, I don't know, let's say Labour. By Leo Hickman's reasoning we would all assume it was a one-issue party that dealt only with employment issues. Its flagship policy would be Jobcentre Plus. It would have no policy on crime, because crime isn't work. It could have no policy on defence, health or public transport, except insofar as wages and contracts were concerned. Is that what we would assume about a party called Labour?

Possibly the Greens are asking for trouble because they have a flower as their logo. But then, so does Labour. And the Lib Dems have a startled chicken, but would anyone say this aptly symbolised the Liberal Democrats? (Ok, I concede that particular point).

It always was strange that people would describe the Greens as "single issue". You only ever had to look at our manifesto to see policies on everything that everyone else had policies on.

It's also a fundamental misrepresentation. The Green party – formerly the Ecology party – formerly People – has an ecological perspective. Ecology is about everything and how it all interconnects. How could anyone ever see everything and how it all interconnects as a single issue?

This is what's distinctive about the Green party: it is the original party of joined-up thinking. The other parties have traditionally seen issues as though they were separate things in separate boxes. So, for example, transport policy was only about moving people and goods from A to B. But ask a Green to invent a transport policy for you, and they wouldn't know how to be so narrow. A Green or ecological perspective will, by its very nature, think of the thing itself and how it interconnects with everything else. Hence transport and climate change; transport and social inclusion; transport and congestion and the resulting costs to businesses; transport and disruption of communities; the impacts of transport's noise and air pollution on health; transport and external costs; and so on. That's how you end up with a Green transport policy, as opposed to endless roadbuilding, airport expansions and the highest rail fares in Europe.

That the party that blazed new trails and pioneered joined-up thinking was caricatured as single issue, against all logic, against all evidence, is one of the big ironies of modern British politics.

Most of the time, most people get most of their information about politics from the mass media. It's a relief to see that the media have recently been giving more attention, for instance, to the Green party's economic policies. Indeed, one highly respected journalist in the Daily Telegraph last week congratulated the Green Party for being ahead of the economic curve with its Green New Deal. But the reappearance of the "one-issue Greens" myth in the Guardian, of all places, in the last few days shows that the falsehood still lives.

Whoever this falsehood serves, it doesn't serve the British voter. Democracy depends on good information. The media acknowledge their duty to tell the truth. I think there's one major task the UK media could undertake now, while British politics is in such a state of disarray that the British voter is clamouring for sweeping reforms. It's this: tell the British voter about the Green party. Not about its environment policy, but about its million-jobs manifesto. Its commitment to re-regulating the buses and doubling the number of them. Its policy for re-nationalising the railways and slashing rail fares. Its policy of rescuing the NHS from privatisation, restoring free dental care and dramatically improving maternity services.

These are good policies, and they're policies only the Green party is offering. They're popular policies, and the readers and viewers and listeners would like to hear about them. Telling the voters about all of this can only be a good thing for British democracy.

Bristol Greens local election campaign launch boosted by the polls - 34% considering voting Green and 11% intending to vote Green across whole country

Things are moving - many voters are seeking a positive alternative to the current mainstream parties who have brought economic chaos, environmental decline and greedy MPs.

Bristol Greens held their local election campaign launch at lunchtime today, on Castle Park's threatened green space. They announced the 10 point policy plan (below), a full slate of candidates in every ward and the fact that a YouGov has found that 34% of people either will or are considering voting Green on June 4th, in addition to a poll in the Sunday Express which showed that currently 11% of voters have already decided to vote Green in the Euro elections!!


Get serious about transport: put Bristol’s councillors on the bus!

We want the council to start seriously pursuing the creation of a transport authority for Bristol. Parking privileges for councillors should be revoked to concentrate their minds on finding practical solutions to Bristol’s transport problems, such as better buses, trams and the expansion and improvement of the local rail network.

Think global, act local

Wherever we’re elected, Greens promote local shops, post offices, schools, parks, better high streets, keeping jobs within communities, local food and more allotments. People should be able to walk to their local library or swimming pool.

It’s time for a Green New Deal – starting here in Bristol

Bristol should be leading the way investing in green jobs and green businesses. Investing more in domestic energy efficiency, for example, would fight climate change, keep homes warmer, bring in significant extra funding from government and help everyone save money.

Twenty is plenty

Support for 20mph zones across all the city’s dangerous roads is growing. This is something we’ve fought for, for many years, and we’re finally being listened to. We will also carry on our campaign to make pavements for people not for parked cars.

Green space is not a waste

The council must be made to stick to its green space strategy, and stop selling off so much green space – be it inner city spaces like Castle Park or greenbelt land.

Do the “little” things right

We would take action to make streets cleaner and improve waste and recycling collections, increase the number of street trees, deal with dog mess and poor quality graffiti and all the other things that have such an effect on the quality of life in our city.

No to putting social services into exploiting private sector hands

The LibDems lost in 2007 because they refused to back down over their plans to privatise home care. Labour won but privatised most of it anyway. Both should be ashamed of themselves. We need a policy that values the vital work done by Bristol’s home carers.

Education policy should be for our children, not for accountants

We are appalled by the council’s policy of saving money by closing some schools while making big schools even bigger. The Green Party believes in education on a human scale: all children, including pre-school, should be able to be educated in their local community.

Get climate serious – no more greenwash

Bristol should adopt a target of cutting citywide carbon emissions by at least 40% by 2020. But to be genuinely serious about stopping runaway climate change, action needs to be taken more quickly, with at least 25% cut by 2015. Time is running short.

We need a progressive voice in Bristol politics

In today’s tough economic climate, it is more important than ever to stand up for what we believe in. Every Green vote reminds the LibDem/Lab/Con parties that there is an alternative to their clogged roads, defunct economy, and overcrowded schools. Our councillors will work hard to focus attention on the topics that really matter: a sustainable economy, public services, quality of life, and the future of the planet.

Party Conference: selection of policy motions passed

A selection of the motions passed at the recent Green Party Conference (below) shows the broad position and appeal of the party (full details of all party policies here). I'm particularly pleased to see the policies on: higher minimum wage; the right to rent if unable to pay your mortgage; zero carbon new houses by 2012; decent treatment for service personnel; a fair deal for Gurkhas; support for the Green New Deal; marine reserves.

* Support for the right of trade unions to establishworkplace
environmental representatives (a cause being supported by the TUC and many
unions).

* A call for an immediate end to the British opt-out of the European
Working Time Directive, and for the national minimum wage to be increased
to be in line with the Council of Europe Decency Threshold (60% of net
national earnings). This would currently mean a minimum of £8.17 per hour.

* A "right to rent" policy so that homeowners unable to meet mortgage
payments and under threat of repossession could transfer ownership of the
home, at less than market value, to the council, and then remain in the
home as council tenants.

* Policy was clarified to make it clear that the party is in favour of the
universal provision of a free lunch in all state schools in England and
Wales on every school day.

* A call for a plan to licence and purchase the Afghan opium crop, to be
processed into morphine and heroin for free or low-cost distribution in
developing countries for the use of pain relief in palliative care and for
other medically approved purposes.

* A call for building regulations to be tightened, and additional training
of architects and builders arranged, so that new buildings, extensions or
conversions meet tougher standards than those now applicable, and so that
all new dwellings are zero-carbon by 2012. (As a result of the workshop on
this motion a new housing email list is to be formed – contact internal
communications if you would like to join it.)

* A motion was passed stating that "Members should at all times, including
when proposing and implementing policy, be sensitive to the fact that the
Green Party does not and will not endorse or tolerate antisemitism, or
discrimination of any form."

* A call for a new contract between service personnel and the state
promising decent living standards to those injured, and to the dependants
of those killed, while asking them to sign a pledge to follow international
law, and to disobey any order requiring them to fire on unarmed civilians.

* Policy committee was asked to develop a new crime policy, and to
establish a crime and policing policy working group...

EMERGENCY MOTIONS

a. A call for Gurkhas and their families to be given fast track eligibility
for either the right to remain or citizenship in the UK, given their
exceptional service..

b. A call for Westminster MPs, who have control over the issue, to grant
the same access to abortion in Northern Ireland (where it is now almost
totally banned) as is available to women in England, Scotland and Wales.

c. A call for a full enquiry into the problems with policing the Climate
Camp at Kingsnorth.

d. A call for extensive highly protected marine reserves around the coast
of Britain to cover 30% of UK waters to 200 nautical miles by 2015.

e. Offering support for the Green New Deal (which was outline in a panel
session chaired by Caroline Lucas at which Tony Juniper, Jeremy Leggett,
Colin Hines and Ann Pettifor spoke).

f. Condemning plans by the Home Office to launch a central database of all
so-called "communications data" as a violation of civil liberties.

Here's why you should vote Green: a policy summary

Local Council powers can be used to deliver the Green Party objectives of improving local neighbourhoods, enhancing local services, promoting health and protecting the wider environment - especially against climate change.

The task is becoming ever more urgent, and the time for action is now. So vote Green in these elections because:

1) Greens are the One Chance for Action on Climate Change

Greens are the One Chance for cheap and clean energy in your community. Greens will help you save money and combat climate change. Greens will help you to go Green locally, investing in small scale locally owned renewable energy
Greens will promote local shops and businesses so local people can provide local goods and services, saving energy, time and money
Greens will oppose devastating airport expansion and new, unnecessary roads, promoting new, cheap public transport instead
Greens will get rid of waste and aim for 100% recycling schemes

2) Health

Greens are the One Chance to keep the Health Service public
The Greens are the One Chance to let carers care
Greens want all vital local health services within walking distance or with easy public transport links for everyone. Greens will protect services from cuts, closure and creeping privatisation. Greens will oppose wasteful, financially damaging PFI health schemes. Greens will cut bureaucracy, top heavy management and distorting targets to let carers care.
Greens will build healthy living into our work and leisure by making cycling and walking easy and pleasant.

3) Education

The Greens are the One Chance to keep education open to all
The Greens are the One Chance to let teachers teach.
Greens want local schools within walking distance or with easy public transport links for everyone. Greens will protect schools from cuts, closure and creeping privatisation. Greens will oppose wasteful, financially damaging PFI education schemes. Greens will cut bureaucracy, top heavy management and distorting targets to let teachers teach.
Greens will campaign for the restoration of student grants and the abolition of fees.
Greens believe everyone should education be open to all, regardless of their background or financial status.

4) Housing

The Greens are the One Chance for decent housing for all
Greens want good housing for everyone. We will make sure that affordable housing is always part of new housing projects. We will push for new, high quality council and housing association flats and houses. We will also put money into housing cooperatives and self build schemes.
Council house repairs will be dealt with swiftly and empty properties brought back into use. ALMOs will be opposed and residents brought into management and control of housing stock.
Greens will help council and housing association tenants get low energy bills through putting in the best insulation, small wind turbines and solar panels. Greens will make sure planning laws do not get in the way of people who want to help combat climate change through installing their own small wind and solar energy panels.

5) Greens are your One Chance for councillors that make your voice heard

Green councillors will make your voice heard by
(i) standing up for the local community, providing proper value for money and listening to local people not big business
(ii) giving local neighbourhoods a direct say in the decisions that affect them - devolving powers to neighbourhood forums and parish councils
(iii) taking your complaints seriously - ensuring graffiti and fly-tipping is removed within 24 hours of it being reported.

One World. One Chance. Vote Green Party.

Greens and local elections: radical, principled but pragmatic and your one chance for real progress

At the Green Party's launch of its local election campaign there were things said that particularly struck me as important and I thought them worth reproducing here:

Caroline Lucas, Green MEP, said:

"The Greens are your One Chance for truth and action on climate change. The Greens are your One Chance for decent schools and housing. The Greens are your One Chance for councillors that make your voice heard.

On climate change, for example, we will oppose more devastating airport expansion and more new road building programmes - and promote affordable, efficient public transport instead.

On education, the Greens will protect schools from cuts, closure and creeping privatisation, and will oppose wasteful, financially damaging PFI schemes.

On housing, we'll make sure that affordable housing is always part of new housing projects, and we'll help ensure that council and housing association tenants get the best and micro-renewable energy and installations.

And we're committed to listening to local people, and involving people in the decisions that affect them. That's why our candidates and councillors are working tirelessly across the country - and we hope to see record gains in this election as a result!"

Derek Wall , one of the Green Party's two Principal Speakers said:

"Blair and Brown have dashed the hopes of a nation for real action on social justice and an end to erosion of our education and health services.

Instead, Britain has been governed by Tory Party Lite for the last decade.

That is why Green Party cllrs around the country are challenging the Blairite polices of council house sell offs, of piece-meal privatisation of education, and failure on climate change.

The time has come - we cannot afford another 10 years of broken promises and inaction.
Greens offer a real way forward, another way of doing things. Where people are put before profit, where long term sustainability matters more than tomorrow's headlines.

Here in Millbank spin governed politics. People were sold a lie, that Labour really meant to change things. They were never serious about real change. And that is why they have failed.

Green politicians are different:

We are not funded by big business
We are not a party driven by spin rather than substance
We are a radical, principled but pragmatic force

With rising emissions, sleazy politicians and public trust at an all time low, principled Green politicians are needed now more than ever.

We can answer the call for change.
Vote Green on May 3rd."