Green Party

Greens announce final candidate numbers

12 May 2017

* Greens stand in 80% of seats in England and Wales*

* Jonathan Bartley, co-leader: “With Britain at a crossroads we’re giving voters a real choice”

The Green Party will stand candidates in 80% of seatsin England and Wales on June 8 giving the majority of voters the chance to vote for a candidate who will fight for a new kind of politics.

Greens will stand in a total of 457 seats across England and Wales. At least 22 Greens stood aside to increase the chance of a progressive candidate beating the Conservatives. The Women’s Equality Party stood down for the Greens in five seats, while the Lib Dems stood down in one.

A total of 467 Green candidates will stand for election across the UK with bold policies to create a better Britain – including giving voters a final say on Brexit with the chance to stay in Europe

Jonathan Bartley, co-leader of the Green Party of England and Wales, said:

“The vast majority of people in England and Wales have the chance to vote Green. With Britain at a crossroads we’re giving voters a real choice.

“In a handful of seats Green Party members took the brave decision not to stand – and we’re proud that our party has put the opportunity to create a more compassionate country above narrow political divides.

“For a confident and caring country, vote Green on June 8th.”

ENDS.

For more information: press@greenparty.org.uk / 0203 691 9401

Notes:

1. Green candidates include:

· Aimee Challenor, 19, in Coventry South: Aimee is Green Party LGBTIQA+ spokesperson and the only openly trans spokesperson of a UK Political Party.

· Larry Sanders, 82, in Oxford East: Larry is Green Party health spokesperson and brother to US Senator Bernie Sanders.

· Lawrence McNally, 18, in Cities of London and Westminster constituency: Lawrence is the Green Party’s youngest candidate.

2. Green Party candidate numbers since 1974:

· 1974: 6

· 1977: 5

· 1979: 53

· 1983: 109

· 1987: 133

· 1992: 253

· 1997: 89

· 2001: 145

· 2005: 182

· 2010: 310

· 2015: 535

· 2017: 467

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May 12, 2017 GovWorldMagGreen PartyGB • Green Party

Caroline Lucas announces Green Party’s environment promises

11 May 2017

Green Party pledges to protect the natural world in the wake of the EU referendum, introduce locally owned energy companies, and end plastic waste
Caroline Lucas: “Building a successful economy is not at odds with protecting our environment, it is impossible without it.”
Launch: 10.30am, Thursday 11 May, Woodberry Wetlands, N16 5HQ [1]

Caroline Lucas is set to announce how the Green Party will put the environment at the heart of its politics at the launch of the party’s Environment Manifesto.

Speaking to conservation activists at Woodberry Wetlands [2] in London, Lucas is expected to say Britain’s economic prosperity “depends on the natural world”, and that “a prosperous, thriving future will be green – or not at all”.

The Green Party Environment Manifesto [3] will include plans for:

A new Environmental Protection Act which to protect natural world in the wake of the EU referendum decision by creating a new environmental regulator and court
Ending the monopoly of the Big Six energy companies by building democratic, locally owned alternatives
Ending plastic waste by introducing a bottle deposit scheme to stop 16 million plastic bottles ending up in environment every day

Caroline Lucas, Green Party co-leader, is expected to say:

“The environment has been wilfully ignored by the political mainstream and our climate and our countryside will pay the price of an environment-free election. With 2016 the hottest year on record, and a climate-denier in the White House, the need for bold and dynamic action on climate change has never been more urgent. The UK must lead the world in building a green economy and investing in a viable future – one that respects and nurtures the natural systems on which we depend. The Greens are the only party to truly recognise the importance of the environment.

“Our economic prosperity depends on the natural world. It is the ultimate source of everything we make and use – from food and materials, to the air we breathe. Even the digital economy depends on rare earth metals and huge amounts of energy. Building a successful economy is not at odds with protecting our environment, it is impossible without it. A prosperous, thriving future will be green – or not at all.”

Notes:

The launch will be held at 10.30am on Thursday 11 May 2017 at Woodberry Wetlands, West & Coal House Entrance: New River Path via Lordship Road, N16 5HQ
Woodberry Wetlands was opened last year by Sir David Attenborough and is an example of how it is possible to create green space within cities to benefit both the environment and local communities.
THE GREEN PARTY’S ENVIRONMENT MANIFESTO – KEY POLICIES

A LONG-TERM GOAL FOR NATURE

The Green Party will push for a new Act of Parliament to protect important EU regulations, and enshrine long-term goals for the environment into law. With almost 60% of species in the UK in long-term decline, and 15% are at risk of disappearing altogether, the need for a generational plan to restore our natural world is clearer than ever.

A Green Guarantee in Brexit negotiations and Trade Deals to ensure that all EU-derived legislation, including the Precautionary and Polluter-Pays principles, are maintained and strengthened.
Create a new Office for Environmental Protection and an Environmental Court that would monitor and enforce new long-term goals for biodiversity, water and air quality.
Build a network of inter-linking local ecological spaces on both land and sea, ensuring that both our wildest places and urban green spaces are protected and allowed to flourish.
Establish a right for every person in the UK to have access to a healthy and safe green space promoting good mental health, physical exercise, and building community.

INNOVATE AND INVEST IN THE LOW-CARBON ECONOMY

Our energy system is broken and is not delivering what households and businesses need – fuelled by dirty energy that belongs in the past, it is failing us both as customers and as citizens. The Green Party will harness the dramatically falling costs of renewable energy, and reverse the uncertainty created by years of government neglect.

Create a new Green Investment and Innovation Centre with borrowing powers to finance the transition to a zero-carbon economy, creating a government owned hub for innovation and investment in our low-carbon economy. Without decisive action, investment in renewable energy is set to drop by 95% over next two years.
Keep fossil fuels where they belong: in the ground. We will introduce a ban on fracking, phase-out the £6bn-a-year fossil fuel subsidies, bring forward the coal phaseout date to 2023 (at the latest), divest public funds from the fossil fuel industry, and ensure a just transition for those communities dependent on fossil fuel jobs.

TAKE BACK CONTROL OF OUR ENERGY SYSTEM

End the monopoly of the Big Six by building democratic, locally owned alternatives – reaching at least 42 gigawatts by 2025. We will require grid operators to give priority access to community energy projects, and pioneer a new Community Energy Toolkit to empower local communities to create energy and municipal heating projects in every town and city.
Democratise energy ownership by reforming tax-relief for smaller-scale projects, introducing Green ISAs, promoting Green Bonds by allowing tax-free bonds for green projects, and issuing government backed Green Bonds.
Introduce progressive energy tariffs so that small consumers pay less per unit than large ones, special needs are recognised, people are not cut off when they can’t afford to pay, and nobody is forced to have pre-payment meters.

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May 11, 2017 GovWorldMagGreen PartyGB • Green Party

Green Party condemns Labour support for ‘HMS Pointless’

11 May 2017

The Green Party has responded to the pledge in Labour’s leaked draft manifesto to retain the Trident nuclear weapon system [1]. The Greens have already pledged to scrap Trident and spend its £3.6bn per year running costs on the NHS [2].

Jonathan Bartley, Green Party co-leader, said:

“Labour’s stance on Trident is both deeply disappointing and self-evidently absurd. What could be more illogical that pledging to renew a multibillion pound nuclear weapons system that will never be used? With people struggling to get by in Britain it’s inexcusable to be wasting people’s money on this cold war relic.

“Instead of funding HMS Pointless we could plough billions of pounds into our health service, hiring 85,000 more nurses, midwives and other NHS staff. Labour has acknowledged that nuclear weapons would result in the ‘indiscriminate killing of millions of innocent civilians’ [3] yet refuses to see sense and pledge to scrap Trident. Real security means having a world class health service, not locking ourselves into replacing obsolete, useless weapons.”

Notes:

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May 11, 2017 GovWorldMagGreen PartyGB • Green Party

Green Party responds to Labour’s education plans

10 May 2017

The Green Party has said Labour’s plans for education [1] are not bold enough to fix the broken system.

Vix Lowthion, Green Party education spokesperson and Isle of Wight candidate, said:

“Labour’s plans for education would simply pump more money into a broken system. There is no doubt schools need proper funding but on top of this the Green Party has bold plans to overhaul education so every parent can be sure their child will get the best start in life. We would bring free schools and academies back under the control of local authorities so they can be held to account and get rid of the relentless and counter-productive testing of teachers and pupils. This would free schools up to stop teaching to the test and instead give children and young people an education that prepares them for life.”

Notes:

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/may/09/labour-pledges-6bn-annual-boost-to-school-budgets#img-1
Vix Lowthion is Green Party education spokesperson and candidate for the Isle of Wight, where she is a secondary school teacher.

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May 10, 2017 GovWorldMagGreen PartyGB • Green Party

Green Party pledges equal treatment for physical and mental health

10 May 2017

*Greens announce three mental health policies in Worcester

*Co-leader Jonathan Bartley: “We must support those who are suffering – very often alone and in silence – with the weight of a mental health illness”

The Green Party has announced three mental health pledges in Worcester today [1], promising to tackle Britain’s growing mental health crisis by to giving mental health parity of esteem with physical health and ensuring everyone gets the treatment they need.

The Greens will also introduce awareness and empathy education to help prevent bullying and school-based therapy to treat mental health earlier.

The announcement comes during Mental Health Awareness Week [2], which runs from May 8 to 14.

The Green Party will pledge to:

Give mental health parity of esteem with physical health
Make sure everyone who needs psychological therapy receives it within 28 days of being referred
Roll out of new school-based therapy to treat mental ill health earlier and awareness and empathy education to limit the likelihood of bullying

New figures released last month show mental health budgets are being cut by £4.5m in five English regions this year [3], despite the Conservative Party promising to up spending [4]. Three in four people who need mental health support are not getting it [5] and between 2013 and 2016 the amount of the health budget spent on mental health fell from 1.4% to 0.7% [6].

Jonathan Bartley, Green Party co-leader, said:

“We must put the wellbeing of people ahead of the Conservative Party’s destruction of our public services. The Green Party will make sure mental health is treated with equal seriousness to that of physical health so that we can finally support those who are suffering – very often alone and in silence – with the weight of a mental health illness.

“The Greens are committed to creating a caring Britain that looks after people with mental health problems and our plan for schools will build a society where people look out for each other. We won’t just treat illness but reverse the Tory Government’s failed policies to tackle the factors that contribute to poor mental health, like housing shortages, rising poverty and cuts to public services.”

Notes: