20 May 2009
The Green Party will be launching its Manifesto for the Essex County Council elections at 2pm, Friday 22nd May at the steps to County Hall, central Chelmsford.
The Manifesto is available here.
The Greens are standing in 80% of the wards in Essex, repeating the strong showing they mounted in 2005.
There will be Greens standing in every ward in the districts/boroughs of Braintree, Chelmsford, Colchester, Epping, Harlow, Maldon, Tendring and Uttlesford. There are also some Greens standing in Castle Point and Rochford.
The Green Party strongly supports encouraging more women into local politics. For the 3rd year in a row, there is a 50:50 gender balance of Green candidates in Colchester. This year there are also equal numbers of male and female Green candidates in Tendring, Braintree and Uttlesford, In Castle Point, all 3 Greens are women. Across Essex as a whole, the Greens are standing almost as many female as male candidates.
The Greens will be mounting active campaigns in a number of wards, particularly in and around Witham, where in 2005, the highest Green vote in Essex was secured and where there are already Greens on the local Town and District council. The Greens will also be mounting challenges in Colchester, where the party is closing in on winning its first council seats.
There has been a recent surge in support for the Greens according to recent opinion polls (ComRes) on the back of the MPs expenses scandal.
But the Greens will also be highlighting the more local concerns within Essex about the use of taxpayers money - including the controversy over foreign trips at tax payers expense by senior county councillors and the lavish use of public money on publicity and promotion by the County Council. The Greens have pledged to cut this corporate spending and divert it to schools where it could be much better used.
The Greens are also calling on voters not to resort to racist extremists to vent their frustration at the political system. A strong Green vote, with the first Green County Councillors elected on June 4th, would be a far more effective response to the current crisis.
Cllr. James Abbott, Essex Green Party Co-ordinator said
"We urge people to use this opportunity on June 4th to send a powerful message to the establishment parties, by making a positive Green choice and not to resort to voting for extremists.
Green Councillors across the East of England have shown themselves to be hard working for their local communities and will seek a far more open and accountable County Council than the one that currently holds office.
We would also urge voters not to re-elect the very same parties that have got us into the mess we are in. People can vote for Greens who offer a positive alternative and who are keen to get into County Hall to help local communities - for example, by opposing Lord Hanningfield' s plans to privatise services, fighting to keep local schools open and supporting green energy investment to curb carbon emissions and save on fuel bills.
Green Councillors would work for improved local transport and of course, further improvements in recycling whilst robustly countering the threat of massive waste factories in Essex and an incinerator, which people dont want, but which the Tories seem fixated on bulldozing through".
Speaking on Lord Hanningfield' s plans to close and merge schools in Colchester, Peter Lynn from Colchester Green Party said
"The education authority should take heed of the wishes and needs of parents, teachers and local residents and look to the future of our children and our communities rather than just grabbing at property development opportunities. "
-Launch at 2pm Friday 22nd May at the steps of County Hall, Chelmsford
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