28 August 2019

Jonathan Bartley, Green Party co-leader, commenting on the announcement from Boris Johnson this morning of plans to prorogue parliament, said:

“This is an outrage, a cynical attempt to subvert the will of parliament.

“It is clear there is already a huge public reaction against this, with signatures flooding in on petitions and plans being made for peaceful demonstrations at Westminster, which the Green Party will be supporting.”

“It is important that everyone doesn’t despair, but gets active instead. There are four key actors in this situation: the government, the parliament, the people and the courts.

“Certainly the first three, and probably the fourth, are going to have important roles – we want to encourage the people to be at the forefront, as should be the way in a democracy.

“There is no democratic way to deliver a crash-out Brexit. We need a People’s Vote: that is the most democratic way forward that hands the crucial issue back to the people.”

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25 August 2019

Responding to reports of a possble cut to fuel duty (1), Green peer Jenny Jones has said:

“The UK has declared a climate emergency, there’s grave global concern about the Amazon, ‘the lungs of the world’, being consumed by fire, and yet what we hear from our Prime Minister is the floating of a populist policy that he hopes will win over the votes of Brexit Party backers.

Notes 

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15 August 2019

Commenting on today’s A-levels results, Vix Lowthion, Green Party Education Spokeperson and a secondary teacher who was with her pupils as they got the results this morning, said:

“This morning I was looking at the nervousness of students, teachers and parents and reflecting how A-levels are high-stakes testing.

“Pupils feel that their whole future is fixed in three exams taken in the summer heat. The working reality for adults is investigation, project work and in teams. Our qualifications system should reflect these 21^st-century skills.

“A-levels instead emphasise the ability to memorise and pass tests.

Our society needs adults who can analyse, reflect and collaborate. These skills can be built through module tests and research.

“As a sixth-form teacher I know the hard work and stress A-levels can generate.

“My compassion and support if you’re disappointed. Life’s joys aren’t only found through taking the straight and direct paths.”

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15 August 2019

Responding to the news that drug-related deaths in England and Wales are the highest they have been since records began more than a quarter of a century ago (1), Green Party deputy leader Amelia Womack said:

“We are seeing in these figures the huge human cost of the ‘War on Drugs’, and the impact of cutbacks to treatment and prevention services following Westminster government austerity.

“It is striking the higher levels of deaths in the poorer regions of the UK, including in Wales. 

“Green Party policy calls for a different approach. We need to take a public health approach to the misuse of drugs, and protect individuals, communities and especially children at risk of exploitation through county line drug gangs.

“Our current unregulated, out-of-control, illegal drug distribution is linked to crime, violence and lives of misery.” 

Notes

(1)   https://www.theguardian.com/society/2019/aug/15/drug-poisoning-deaths-in-england-and-wales-at-highest-level-ever-recorded

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15 August 2019

London’s Green MEP Scott Ainslie will today be attending the “Stand With Kashmir” event in Trafalgar Square, which starts at 5pm.

In advance of the event, Scott said: “Security in Kashmir can only come from the respect of human rights and self-determination. Time and time again UN agencies and human right organisations have found how Kashmiris’ human rights are being violated. 

“It is time to put an end to the decades of violence and human rights suffered by the inhabitants of Kashmir, and the decisions by India to unilaterally end the rights of Kashmiris is deeply disturbing and should be called out.

“By virtually cutting off the region, India is making Kashmiris inhabitants of an open-air prison, completely flouting the principle of autonomy enshrined in its constitution. Far from guarantee its security, the Indian Government is raising the stakes in a dangerous game that will only satisfy the hawks in its administration.

“By altering the constitutional status of Kashmir, India is reducing the possibility of a peaceful solution to a conflict that has kept two nuclear-armed nations at odds for the last 70 years. An outbreak of active conflict would bring untold human suffering.”

“Proponents of a post-Brexit ‘global Britain’, including the prime minister, seem once again unable to make our voice heard in international forums.

“We need the UK government to advocate for an ethical foreign policy that builds capacity for conflict resolution. The defence of human rights in Kashmir, including freedom of the press and of assembly, should be the starting point of any definitive peace talks.

“But we also need to call for calm and restraint from all sides. Fiery rhetoric and inflammatory language will not help this situation.”

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