1 November 2023

The co-leaders of the Green Party have written to the UK government and the official opposition urging them to “listen to the people” and join international calls for a ceasefire in the Israel-Gaza conflict.

In a letter to both the Foreign Secretary, James Cleverly [1], and his Labour counterpart, Shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy [2], Green co-leaders Carla Denyer and Adrian Ramsay, deputy leader Zack Polanski and Global Solidarity spokesperson Carne Ross set out how the only way to protect civilians is for the fighting to stop.

In addition, they call on both the Conservatives and Labour to throw their weight behind an “internationally arbitrated once-and-for-all settlement” so that “Israeli and Palestinian citizens can live in safety and security with their rights, at last, fully protected.”

Co-leader Carla Denyer said:

“The mass civilian suffering we have seen in Israel and Gaza has shocked the world. Over 700 civilians are being killed every day, one child every ten minutes. The dire humanitarian situation is clearly intolerable and must end.

“We cannot hear arguments about violence now somehow preventing further violence in future without shuddering. The lives of children cannot be bartered in this way.

“We are deeply concerned that neither the UK government nor the official opposition has joined international calls for a ceasefire. It is with deep regret that the Green Party feels the need to point out that at times like these, silence is complicity.

“We urge both the government and the Labour Party to listen to the British people, three-quarters of whom want an immediate ceasefire [3].”

In the letters, the Green Party sets out how war crimes have been committed by both sides since Hamas’s horrific attacks on 7 October.

Green Party co-leader Adrian Ramsay said:

“The awful attacks committed by Hamas on 7 October were brutal violence, and the hostages must be released unconditionally, but the horrific attacks we saw on that day cannot justify military actions that break international law.

“There is no military route to long-term safety and security for the Israeli and Palestinian peoples, as they both deserve. Instead, there must be a political settlement, based on the requirements of international law and beginning with an end to the occupation.

“The UK government should push for an internationally arbitrated once-and-for-all settlement that fully ends the occupation of Palestinian territories including East Jerusalem, in accordance with the requirements of international law.

“It used to be the case that international law was the basis of UK government policy, and the positions of both Conservatives and Labour.  It is deeply troubling that this seems to have been forgotten by both government and opposition.  Such an abandonment will do long-term harm to Britain’s already-questionable reputation as a defender of the international rules-based order.”

ENDS

Notes

            1

https://greenparty.org.uk/assets/files/letters/letter-to-foreign-secretary.pdf

           2

https://greenparty.org.uk/assets/files/letters/letter-to-david-lammy.pdf

            3

https://yougov.co.uk/topics/travel/survey-results/daily/2023/10/19/e363e/1

For more information or to arrange an interview contact the press office on press@greenparty.org.uk or call 0203 691 9401

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31 October 2023

Responding to news that the government has dropped plans to close rail ticket offices following overwhelming public opposition [1], Co-leader Carla Denyer said: 

“This is a huge victory for people power and a massive defeat for the government’s attempt to run down public services.  

“Up and down the country, people have protested, signed petitions, responded to the consultation, written to their MP, written to the local paper, organised in trades unions and more. The result has been so clear and overwhelming that even this government could not ignore it. 

“People can have renewed confidence that coming together on issues that really matter can produce positive change.” 

NOTES 

[1]  https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-67263931 

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24 October 2023

• Call to reform Universal Credit, scrap two-child benefit cap and introduce wealth tax to tackle ‘inequality crisis’  

Following the publication of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation’s report into destitution in the UK [1], Green Party co-leader Adrian Ramsay said: 

“Thirteen years of Tory government has resulted in a catalogue of social, environmental and economic wreckage. And there can be no worse legacy than leaving almost four million people in destitution – a quarter of them children. This is an utterly shameful record for the sixth largest economy in the world and reveals that the UK faces a deep inequality crisis.   

“But Labour is also failing to address inequality or offer hope to those struggling to meet their essential needs. Research shows that the two-child benefit cap impacts around 1.5 million children and their failure to commit to scrapping the policy leaves thousands of families impoverished. Likewise, their refusal to back a wealth tax will allow inequality to continue unchecked.  

“Only the Greens offer the bold common-sense policies to transform our economy and people’s lives. We have long called for restoring the £20 Covid uplift to Universal Credit and doubling it to £40 per week, with equivalent increases for those on legacy benefits. This would raise the current rate from £85 per week to £125. 

“The Joseph Rowntree Foundation is right: every family needs to be protected and to be able to afford essentials such as food and household bills. Ultimately, the Green Party supports the introduction of a no-strings-attached Universal Basic Income, funded through a more progressive tax system, including a wealth tax on the super-rich.”  

Notes 

1. https://www.jrf.org.uk/report/destitution-uk-2023  

2. https://www.theguardian.com/society/2023/jul/16/two-child-benefit-cap-explainer  

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23 October 2023

• Green Party parliamentary candidate for Waveney Valley, Adrian Ramsay: “We need to shout from the rooftops about the impacts of climate change and water privatisation on flooding.” 

 Adrian Ramsay, co-leader of the Green Party and parliamentary candidate for Waveney Valley spent the weekend talking to people affected by the flooding in Eye, Suffolk. He said:  

“The scenes and stories of flooding I’ve been seeing and hearing from Suffolk and Norfolk residents have been deeply shocking. This is not the first time East Anglia has been flooded, and it certainly won’t be the last. Climate change experts are shouting from the rooftops that these so-called ‘once in a generation’ events will become increasingly frequent.   

“The Conservative government is letting us down badly.  Not only are they not taking the issue of climate change seriously – reigning in on existing commitments – but they, and private water companies, are also failing appallingly when it comes to flood risk management.   

 “Before privatisation, public water bodies were responsible for flood defences. Now defences are at best piecemeal. This is another good reason to take our water industry back into public control.  

“We urgently need a long term and coordinated approach. This can only be achieved with a water industry focussed on investing in plugging leaks and protecting communities, not on syphoning off millions of pounds in dividends to shareholders. And rather than bulldozing planning laws, as Labour proposes, we need to reassess planning regulations which still allow for new buildings on flood plains.  

 “It is clear we will need Green MPs in parliament after the next general election making the case for climate action and protecting communities.” 

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18 October 2023

Responding to the National Infrastructure Commission’s report advising that the UK’s public transport, home heating and water networks are all in need of renewal [1], Green Party co-leader Carla Denyer said:

“There is much to welcome in this report and it chimes closely with Green Party policy in many areas. We agree people on lower incomes should have heat pumps installed; that hydrogen has no place in home heating and on the need to block more incineration in favour of massively ramping up recycling rates.

“There are also areas where we would go further. We agree on the urgency of cleaning up our toxic rivers and waterways and modernising water infrastructure, but rather than this being carried out by private water companies – who continue to leak millions in dividends to shareholders – this much needed investment should be carried out by a publicly owned water industry.

“But overall, this report is extremely timely. The Conservatives have been peddling a false narrative about how greening our society will increase costs for households. However, the National Infrastructure Commission shows clearly that boosting investment to transition our economy will result in lower not higher household energy bills.”

ENDS

Notes

               1

https://nic.org.uk/news/long-term-review-sets-out-pressing-need-to-modernise-infrastructure-to-support-economic-growth-and-climate-action/

For more information or to arrange an interview contact the press office on press@greenparty.org.uk or call 0203 691 9401

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