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Green Party’s Vision for South Tyneside

In the third of the mini manifestos produced by our candidates in the local government elections for South Tyneside on 1st. May, the Green Party outline their plans for the borough.

The Green Party – unique and proud of it!

Environmental issues have long formed a core of Green Party policies, but the Green Party recognises it is nothing without people.
The Green Party is the only truly democratic political party, having no top-down leadership structure. Policy decisions are still made democratically at conference – not in secret by a cabal. Policy is guided by recognition of the genuine sustainable needs of our society, not by narrow focus groups, greedy business interests and cynical poll-led spin. We will not let media panic set our agenda.
The old guard

Labour has failed our society, put our future in dire risk and has:

• - Led us into two disastrous conflicts
• - Presided over rising CO2 emissions
• - Encouraged unsustainable increases in road traffic
• - Taken us to the brink of financial catastrophe

Locally, Labour has backed environmentally disastrous projects like the second Tyne Tunnel, proposals for building on the Fellgate greenbelt and waste burning. Greens have been consistently outspoken critics of unsustainable projects.
The other parties make nice sounds about the environment – but only the Green Party means business.
A better future

We have a better vision – for us all – one that is being realised in places like Brighton, Kirklees and London, where Green Party councillors are making a real difference to people’s lives.

Greens would work for a green South Tyneside:

Homes

New homes can be genuinely affordable and sustainable. The Green Party would change planning rules to ensure all new properties are built to high environmental standards.
To bring existing properties up to basic insulation standards, the Green Party would make it cheaper and easier for people to insulate their homes, and would encourage people to insulate their homes by changing planning policy to give planning permission for home improvements only for those homes that already meet minimum standards.
Greens would stop the slide of social housing into private hands for bargain basement prices.

Development

Greens, as they have already proved in South Tyneside, fight to protect our greenbelt from development.
Inappropriate development would be challenged and alternatives sought.
Waste

The Green Party can see the sound economic benefits in partnering with our neighbours to share the costs and benefits of managing our waste, but this cannot be done using costly and dangerous techniques such as incineration.

Greens want the ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ concept at the heart of all council business.

Climate change

South Tyneside council does not take climate change seriously. The Green Party wants the creation of ambitious initiatives and the adoption of challenging targets to tackle global heating.
Finance

The Green Party would take prudent care of the council’s finances. No more CAF money would be allocated to parking schemes and ripping up green verges under the guise of ‘environmental funding’. CAF funds would only be invested in schemes with genuine environmental and social benefits.
We would end council tax subsidising council staff car parks, and change the street lighting contract to use cheaper low energy lighting units.
Of all the political parties in South Tyneside, only one party offers a fresh alternative to the tired old ‘business as usual’ dirty habits of the other parties.
The Green Party.

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