20 May 2024

Responding to the announcement by the International Criminal Court (ICC) that it is seeking arrest warrants for senior Hamas and Israeli officials for war crimes and crimes against humanity, including the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, Green Party spokesperson for global solidarity, Carne Ross, said: 

“The ICC prosecutor’s announcement today sets out in horrifying detail the brutal decisions undertaken by the leaders of both Hamas and Israel.

“Green Party leaders wrote to the foreign secretary David Cameron six months ago setting out how war crimes had been committed by both sides [1]. The UK government must now stop denying the heinous crimes perpetrated by the government of Israel and its defence forces including, according to the ICC, the starvation of civilians, wilfully causing great suffering and intentionally directing attacks against a civilian population.  

“This is a big test for David Cameron who has to date refuted any suggestion of war crimes by Israel and refused to reveal the government’s legal advice. Under the Rome Statute, which the UK helped write, he is obliged to support this ICC process. The government’s claim that it supports the international rule of law is being put to the test.” 

Notes 

[1] https://www.greenparty.org.uk/news/2023/11/01/green-party-urges-uk-government-and-opposition-to-call-for-ceasefire-in-israel-gaza-conflict/ 

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15 May 2024

Joint Statement from the Co-Leaders and Deputy Leader of The Green Party and Lord Mann, the Government’s Independent Advisor on Antisemitism: 

“Lord Mann and the leadership team at The Green Party of England and Wales met last week to discuss the important issue of antisemitism. Both parties have committed to continued dialogue and working together to ensure that antisemitism, like all racism, has no place in Green politics and to better educate Green representatives about anti-Jewish racism. The Green Party has taken a series of proactive steps towards these goals but understands that this will take consistent work going forward.”

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13 May 2024

Responding to the prime minister’s ‘security’ speech at Policy Exchange [1], in which Rishi Sunak said “we must be prepared strategically, economically, with robust plans and greater national resilience, to meet this time of instability with strength, co-leader of the Green Party Adrian Ramsay said: 

“The prime minister’s speech on security failed to make a single mention of the threats posed by climate change in spite of the government’s own Climate Change Committee being clear that this is one of the biggest challenges of our generation. With land and sea temperature records being broken on an almost daily basis, this is an emergency.  

“Yet instead of announcing any new climate commitments, Sunak chose instead to vilify those pushing for climate action, accusing them of ideological zeal. He also trotted out the tired excuse for inaction, that the costs of achieving Net Zero were too great and would disrupt people’s lives. The reality is that the Conservatives’ decision to listen to the siren song of the fossil fuel industry means we are being left behind in the economic transition. 

“The Green Party understands that the cost of inaction on climate far outweighs the cost of action. We also know the huge disruption to people’s lives that climate breakdown will cause. That’s why Greens want to see investment in insulating homes and turbocharging renewable energy. These sorts of investments will bring down people’s energy bills, create thousands of new jobs and give us real energy security.” 

Notes 

1. https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/pm-speech-on-security-13-may-2024 

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10 May 2024

Responding to Labour Leader Keir Starmer’s speech in Dover, Green Party co-leader Adrian Ramsay said: 

“Labour is right to signal it will abandon the government’s inhumane Rwanda deportation plan, but it has failed to offer people seeking asylum the safe and legal routes that would offer a real alternative to people smugglers, or tackle the roots of the asylum crisis. 

“I don’t want people risking their lives crossing the channel in small boats.  

“But the way to end this awful spectacle isn’t Labour’s punitive, inhumane alternative to the Conservatives ’failed Rwanda scheme.  

“It is providing safe and legal routes for people to apply for asylum from overseas, working for strong international co-operation on supporting asylum seekers and working to address the reasons that people are having to claim asylum – including wars, poverty and the climate crisis.” 

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9 May 2024

Reacting to a new report from the Office for Environmental Protection which says: “government will not meet its ambition that most water bodies will be on the road to good condition or else already in that state by 2027,” Green Party co-leader Carla Denyer said:  

“The Green Party wants to see much greater protection of nature in law, and that includes our rivers. 

“We would set up an Independent Commission for Nature that would set targets for nature protection and restoration, enforced through the courts.  

“This would be groundbreaking and make future governments act to protect our waterways from agricultural and industrial pollution. 

“It would allow for the first time the possibility of individuals, communities and conservation groups taking legal action on behalf of nature. Currently, every time our rivers, seas or land is polluted, prosecution is left to hopelessly underfunded quangos.  

“We also need water companies in public ownership and an end to leaking sewage.   

“We need to give space for all of nature to thrive, and that includes protecting our rivers.” 

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