If the AGC didn t exist, we d have to invent it.

Transcription

1 GREEN COUNCILLOR ACHIEVEMENTS Changing the way councils think Helping local businesses and the local economy before multinationals Both St Albans and Lancashire councils have made commitments to try to source locally from small businesses when asking for quotes, following interventions by a lone Green councillor on each authority. Bristol Green councillors led the formation of Bristol Solar City, an alliance of local solar installation businesses and co-operatives who are aiming to install 1GW of solar power in the city by equivalent to the peak output of Belgium s largest nuclear reactor. Greens supported small businesses in Oxford through rates relief, grants and promotional campaigns Involving young people in the community In 2012 Green councillor Simon Grover persuaded Tory-run St Albans, Hertfordshire, to explore providing a youth centre in the city. In Malvern, Worcestershire, Green councillor John Raines led the campaign to allow the community to buy a council-owned youth centre earmarked for demolition and housing development. It is now thriving under community ownership. Bolstering the community If the AGC didn t exist, we d have to invent it. This booklet has been produced by the Association of Green Councillors. The AGC exists to share and promote the work of our councillors to each other, to our candidates and leaders, to the public and to members who are looking to become councillors. It also provides support, training and advice to councillors. It relies solely on subscriptions from members for its funding. So please join us and pay a subscription. Contact Robert Lindsay, AGC Coordinator agc@greenparty.org.uk was threatened with closure as was the disused town lido. Our sole Green councillor Graham Elliott steered through the sale of the lido and meeting hall to a community charity which is now running both operations at a profit. Camden Greens in 2008 succeeded in obtaining protection for community pubs in the borough s planning policy. Norwich Greens proposed and won a motion to lobby the government for tighter rules to clamp down on the conversion of pubs to betting shops and Tesco Expresses. payers. Bristol s famous Malcolm X Centre in St Pauls, the heart of the city s Afro-Caribbean community, was threatened with closure until Green councillors stepped in to save it. In York, green councillors managed to find new community/charity tenants for a threatened community hall after the youth centre was closed. Bristol Green councillor Gus Hoyt chaired a cross-party group that won the city more police community service officers at a lower cost per head to council tax He and a fellow Green councillor have helped install two free cash machines in the poorer neighbourhoods they represent. In the town of Beccles, Suffolk, the lossmaking council-owned Victorian meeting hall Brighton Rocks The full achievements of Greens on Brighton & Hove council, the only ones the Greens run at the moment, are listed on pages 6 to 11. Mucking in The heavy snows of 2010 brought York s transport network to a halt and demonstrated that the Council did not have sufficient resources to clear the city's footpaths. Cllr Andy D'Agorne proposed the 'Snow Wardens' initiative. Over two hundred volunteers from across the city have now signed up - receiving

2 2 GREEN COUNCILLOR ACHIEVEMENTS Changing the way councils think gloves, a high-vis jacket, a shove, grit supply and safety training. He is now promoting a flood warden scheme. Mid-Suffolk Green Andrew Stringer promised to plant a tree for every vote he received if he was elected. Ten years on, he and fellow mid- Suffolk Greens have kept up the promise every election. Liverpool City council does not recycle aluminium foil so Green councillors and activists decided to do it themselves, setting up their own recycling system with volunteers acting as drop-off points for people s crushed up aluminium. Health Finger-licking bad After KFC applied to open a drive-thru store close to a primary school in Solihull, Green councillor Andy Hodgson persuaded the council to toughen up its planning rules to allow refusal of fast-food chains near schools. The market town of Stowmarket, Suffolk, became the first in the country to open a new NHS dentist surgery after a lengthy campaign by Green councillors. introduce them on all residential roads in Brighton and Hove and York. Green councillors persuaded Kirklees to set up a budget of 3 million to improve road safety and established a preferential parking scheme for low emission vehicles. Graham Elliott, our lone councillor in Beccles, Suffolk has, after a two-year campaign, won the first direct bus service from the town to the nearest hospital 14 miles away. He also helped get a new 4m rail loop put on the line past his town, which allowed trains to pass and frequency to double, dramatically boosting passenger numbers, and saved the river cruise boat, the Big Dog Ferry. Lancaster Greens helped to deliver a cycling demonstration town project with more than 4m external funding for safer routes and cycling promotion. Bristol Green councillors have freed up two inner city streets for children to play by closing them to through traffic. They aim to free two more streets from traffic by the end of Green councillors have persuaded Solihull to take super-strength alcohol off the shelves of the borough s off-licences. Greens initiated Low Emission zones in Oxford city centre. Transport People before vehicles Cyclists are rarely properly consulted in any road and junction changes. Our councillor persuaded St Albans to work with the local cycle campaign group to implement an improved cycle strategy and action plan. Green councillors were instrumental in bringing in 20mph limits on many residential roads in Norwich, Islington and Leicester, a default 20mph limit on all residential roads in Lancashire, and have secured agreement to Investing in the Green economy for sustainable jobs Our lone Green councillor persuaded the ruling Conservatives on St Albans council to agree to set aside 500,000 for renewable energy installations and 50,000 for energy efficiency measures which will pay for itself

3 3 GREEN COUNCILLOR ACHIEVEMENTS Changing the way councils think within 3 years. They also agreed to appoint an energy efficiency manager whose wages would be partly self-financing. In Stroud, Green councillor Simon Pickering championed the Stroud Target 2050 Loan Scheme, to provide up to 10,000 loans to households to cut their energy bills with better insulation and install renewable energy. Work began last year in Stroud on a five-year 12m programme planned out by green councillors Phillip Booth and Simon Pickering to improve the energy efficiency of over 1,000 houses in the district. New local jobs will be created for tradesmen to install insulation, solar panels and heat pumps. The four Greens on Kirklees secured three years of free home insulation funding, against the active opposition of some councillors, who later tried to claim credit. This saved householders over 400 per year and cut emissions. It also created around three dozen local jobs for tradespeople in Kirklees, all at no additional cost to local taxpayers. In Bristol, Cllr Gus Hoyt led the successful campaign for the city to be declared the European Green capital for 2015, which will attract inward investment and visitors to the city and reinforce its environmental reputation. grow their own food and reduce their energy use. Recycling In Lancaster, Cllr Jon Barry championed the roll-out of kerbside recycling, which saw household recycling rates rise from 9% in 2003 to 40% in Brighton has introduced communal recycling bins for 32,000 city centre households, dramatically boosting recycling rates. Prioritising carbon reduction St Albans s lone Green councillor Simon Grover secured a carbon reduction group of councillors to be set up look at ways the whole district can reduce its carbon footprint. Bristol councillor Gus Hoyt has been working on the city s hydrogen strategy, trialling the use of hydrogen-powered buses, ferries and other vehicles with a view to converting from fossil fuel. Gus also led Bristol City s outline deal with Cardiff City to develop two giant tidal lagoons in the Severn Estuary which aim to use the river s famous tide to generate all the region s electricity needs. Investment in local food production Cllr Molly Scott Cato in Stroud has secured 100,000 to invest in local food production for everyone: In a rural area like Stroud, it makes sense to support local food producers so that everyone can eat food grown within the district, she said. Cllrs Chris Coates and Anne Chapman in Lancaster helped to set up LESS, a community interest company, which is helping people In Oxford, Greens secured 200,000 to reduce the City Council s carbon footprint. Saving money Swimming pools into power stations St Albans agreed to use social media to cut down on postal costs thanks to a motion by Simon Grover. Lancaster Green councillors persuaded the council to reduce the number of council

4 4 GREEN COUNCILLOR ACHIEVEMENTS Changing the way councils think managers on top salaries when budget cuts were pressing. Also in Lancaster, Cllr Jon Barry s leadership on climate change has resulted in a 30% reduction in energy use at the council-owned sports centre and a 10% reduction across the whole council. In Shipley, Bradford, Cllrs Martin Love, Hawarun Hussain, Kevin Warnes and secured 875,000 for the local swimming pool to be refurbished to make it energy efficient. It has now become a power station, with an array of PV panels on the roof, extra insulation, double glazing, energy-efficient LED lighting, new heating and ventilation systems. The measures have already reduced gas consumption by 60% and the investment will pay for itself in a few years. The trio want to use it as a model for similar improvements across the district. Standing up for the homeless Solihull Green councillor Chris Williams publicised the plight of a woman who had just had a heart transplant and her 14-year-old daughter who were forced to live in a private hotel for 18 months with rats running through their room as they slept. Since then Solihull has reduced the use of B&Bs to house the homeless. In Lancaster, Cllr John Whitelegg set up and chaired a multi-agency homelessness think tank to try to improve services for homeless people. Working with nature, not against it Green councillors in York stepped in to stop overgrazing of one of the city s famous ancient commons - known as strays. The council then secured stewardship funding for all four of the town s strays so that grazing will only be permitted as part of a planned programme to recreate a species-rich habitat Creating homes while protecting green spaces Councillors representing the business-asusual parties often bow to government and developer pressure to build new houses on green space because it s cheaper for the developer. Green councillors are fighting this all over the country and calling for existing and empty homes to be refurbished and disused brown field sites to be used first. In Stroud, Greens set up their own panel of local experts to draw up detailed needs for each part of the district. This enabled Cllr Simon Pickering, as chair of the Environment Committee, to negotiate agreement on housing numbers and their location with the different political parties to ensure that there is enough land for future jobs and development without encroaching on out-oftown green space. In Kirklees, West Yorkshire, the Green cabinet member for housing secured 143m of government funding for investment in council housing by setting up an arms-length organisation to manage the fund. In Mid-Suffolk, the opposition group of Green councillors are forcing developers trying to build 215 houses on green land outside Stowmarket to reapply with more rented or shared-equity housing and higher energy efficiency standards. Protecting the vulnerable In Oxford, Green councillors are calling for the council to set up a public Letting Agency with no fees to tenants. The council could drive up standards and give tenants a stronger say with a council-run letting agency.

5 5 GREEN COUNCILLOR ACHIEVEMENTS Changing the way councils think In a move to break people s dependence on pay day lenders, in Stowmarket, Suffolk, Councillor John Matthissen is leading a crossagency project to launch a collection and information point for the local Credit Union. Oxfordshire s Green county councillors have produced an alternative budget that protects front-line services for the most vulnerable from cuts, by asking people to chip in an average of 30p per person a week extra in council tax. As older people s champion for Lancaster City council Green Cllr David Brookes has persuaded the council to advertise almshouse charity vacancies on its lettings site and to devote a web page to events and issues for the elderly. In Bradford, Greens secured 300,000 to fund free cavity wall and loft insulation for older residents Warmer homes, cheaper bills, less carbon In Norwich, Greens secured 700,000 for measures to improve energy efficiency in housing. In January 2014 Green councillors proposed that the council commit to higher standards of energy efficiency such as Passivhaus for new council houses. The ruling Labour group agreed to "investigate" high energy standards for council housing. The council has since proposed two schemes of council house building to the Passivhaus standard. Planning permission was granted in October 2015 for the first 105 of these. Bristol Green councillors pushed for and achieved a 97m retrofitting of all council homes in the city with solid wall external insulation. Equality, training and apprenticeships Greens in Brighton have made it standard practice for apprenticeships and training schemes to be included in all council construction contracts. In Lewisham, Brighton & Hove, Norwich, Lancaster, Camden and Worcester, minority Green councillors successfully campaigned for a Living Wage to help tackle poverty. Firsts Thanks to our lone Green councillor, Islington became the first UK council to set a minimum amount of permeable land to prevent flooding. Thanks to Green councillors, Kirklees Council was the first in the UK to establish a Householder Renewable Energy Loan Fund, which gave loans for householders to purchase renewable energy equipment. Brighton & Hove council has become the first in Britain to introduce a floating bus stop where a cycle lane runs behind it to avoid the buses. (See below) In Jan 2014 Brighton became the first local authority in the world to be accredited with two international standards for environmental management and sustainable events. (See below) To protect services for vulnerable in 2014 it also became the first UK local authority to propose a local referendum on raising the council tax above the Government s cap. (See below)

6 6 GREEN COUNCILLOR ACHIEVEMENTS Changing the way councils think A new way to govern Brighton and Hove Brighton and Hove Green councillors took over the running of this important unitary authority in May They are a minority administration, whose initiatives are frequently blocked by Conservative and Labour councillors combined. Here are some of their achievements. Equality, fairness and saving money The council now spends less on senior management than it has in a decade because it cut the chief executive s salary by 40% and raised the pay of the lowest grades, bringing the ratio between the highest and lowest paid council staff to just over 10:1 councillors combined to vote down the proposal. Living Wage On taking office the Greens not only introduced a living wage for its staff and care home workers but also supported the Chamber of Commerce to run a Living Wage Commission to encourage private companies to adopt it. As of July 2014 the city is home to 130 of the UK s 500 living wage paying private companies. Equal pay The Greens grasped the nettle of equal pay for male and female council staff which had been avoided by previous administrations by raising the allowances for some and lowering them for others. It triggered a bin strike but ended with equal allowances for men and women at a time when women lag men by 15 per cent. Referendum In 2014 it became the first UK council to propose a referendum on raising council tax 4.75% to protect services for the city's most vulnerable. Labour and Conservative Standing up to homophobia Stonewall put the council in first place in their 2014 Education Equality Index. Stonewall has described the council as leading the way in celebrating difference and supporting lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students. Prevention works In Oct 2013 new figures showed fewer people in the city are ending up in hospital because of alcohol, more drug users are being treated and crimes against young people had fallen for the third year in a row. Restorative justice The number of young people entering the criminal justice system in the city fell over the three successive years to Oct 2013 as the council s youth crime prevention team joined with police to help young people understand the impact of their behaviour and make amends. Open budget discussion The Green councillors publish annual budget proposals earlier and with more detail Than previous administrations so that they can be scrutinised by everyone, ahead of

7 7 GREEN COUNCILLOR ACHIEVEMENTS Changing the way councils think time, and making this transparent to all other political parties, citizens and the media. Neighbourhood governance The Greens introduced pilots for Neighbourhood Governance schemes, which support communities to take local decisions with local budgets. Urban dereliction to community space They transformed a large, decaying urban open space, Level Park in the centre of town with new gardens, a new water feature, a new children s playground, new public toilets, a cycle café, better lighting and furniture, a new skate park, and more green space. It did this by securing 2.75m of outside funding and using just 250,000 of council taxpayers money. Food waste to compost They expanded community composting across the city; in ten of the city s 26 schemes, residents can turn their food waste into free compost. More than 500 people are now using the community compost service. Getting recycling rates back up Recycling rates have stabilised and are coming back up after a successful trial of a communal system for blocks of flats in one area has now been rolled out to all blocks. Rates had been falling because new Italian-made communal bins inherited from the Tory administration had proved impractical. Recycling rates were further knocked by bin strikes and lorry breakdowns. Latest figures not yet available. Ethical Purchasing Greens introduced an ethical procurement strategy to improve minimum standards for the products the council buys in. For example, the World Wildlife Fund has granted the council a Gold standard for timber purchasing. Open-access to green space in perpetuity They declared over 800 acres of councilowned down land and farm land as open access land, meaning residents can freely use land which was once closed to them. They added another 670 acres in July 2014, protected in perpetuity. Protection for pets New council tenancy agreements include a requirement that dogs living in council-owned homes should be micro-chipped. This has encouraged more tenants who own dogs to behave responsibly as their pets are much easier to trace. Planting for nature B&H Greens have been including more diverse and sustainable planting in its open spaces such as perennials, wildflowers, and bee and butterfly banks. Affordable Homes By November 2014, Greens had overseen the delivery of 389 affordable homes (as part of wider residential and mixed developments). Another 130 are due to be completed before May 2015, and at least another 232 due in the year after the election. Filling empty homes By July 2014 the Green administration had brought some 416 council homes and more than 460 empty private homes back into use. The average time it takes to re-let an empty council home is now just over two weeks

8 8 GREEN COUNCILLOR ACHIEVEMENTS Changing the way councils think the lowest in many years and one of the best turn-round times in the UK Building new homes In the Green Party s term of administration it will have overseen the building 639 homes. A further 681 affordable homes, including more than 200 new council homes, are in the development pipeline. Safety for private tenants In Nov 2012 it introduced a new licensing scheme by which private landlords letting a property for sharing by three or more people must bring it up to an agreed standard. More than 1,500 licences were applied for by April 2014 with new fire alarms and other prevention measures installed. Improving education Education in Brighton & Hove was for long a major concern to parents in the city but since the Greens came to office results have improved. The 2013 GCSE results were the best ever, though they fell in 2014 after tougher marking was introduced across the country. A level results continued to improve in % of sixth form and colleges are good or outstanding as judged by the school inspectorate Ofsted. Early years provision All Children s Centres have been kept open across the city with no loss of services, in contrast to many councils and despite government cuts in this area. All the council s early years provision is judged outstanding by Ofsted. Warmer homes, cheaper bills For the first time in living memory, communal heating bills in some Brighton and Hove council blocks have fallen as council tenants benefit from a major programme of energy efficiency retrofitting which, where possible, include solar panels and new heating systems. We are very proud to be starting work on our second major site in Brighton, one of the most forward thinking and creative cities in the UK Richard Upton, Chief Executive of Cathedral Group (Holdings) July 2014 Helping council tenants In October 2012 the Greens set up a Housing Inclusion Team, to offer financial help and advice to tenants hit by benefit cuts. The group joined forces with advice charity MAC and by August 2013 had helped nearly 400 people access 350,000 in unclaimed benefits and savings on household bills. Imaginative Solutions Rather than wait for the Government to provide funds for building new schools, the Green administration bought a disused police station in Hove and revamped it as a satellite to the nearby junior school so that they could increase the number of children they take. Youth employment In 2013, thanks to ensuring investment in their team helping young people back into training or work, Brighton & Hove became one of the most improved areas in England with only 6.6% of year olds not in employment, education or training the lowest figure since 2004 when this measure was first calculated. No bedroom tax evictions In May 2013 the council was the first in the country to declare a no evictions policy for tenants who could not pay the bedroom tax. It has been extended to 2014/15. Community Banking The Green administration invested 100,000 in a local credit union partly to help it set up an online system for residents to access loans,

9 9 GREEN COUNCILLOR ACHIEVEMENTS Changing the way councils think making the credit union as accessible as high interest payday lenders. It also banned such lenders from advertising on council billboards. they had stalled under the previous Tory administration. Two new libraries While other councils have been closing libraries Brighton greens opened two in 2014 at Mile Oak and Woodlingdean. City renaissance The Greens signed deals in September 2014 to convert the derelict site Circus Street in the city centre into an innovation quarter with an academic building, library and gallery for University of Brighton, a new dance studio, theatre and offices and flats. The council signed a similar deal with the university to redevelop a derelict army barracks, which is estimated to create 740 new jobs over a 10- year period, including a new business school, 300 homes, and central research laboratory to support hi-tech start-up companies. Our experience in Brighton and Hove has shown just what can be achieved if you get the right individuals and organisations together to develop a common vision of how they want to change their food system and then support them in turning that vision into reality. For many years, Brighton and Hove has been ahead of the game. Clare Devereux, Director at Food Matters August 2013 Health for all 18 months after the Greens introduced a concessionary card for entry to leisure centres for people on certain benefits, 1,300 people had signed up and made 34,000 visits to the council s leisure centres. Healthy, quality food In July 2014, Brighton & Hove city council became the first in the country to introduce Soil Association food buying standards for all catering contracts over 75,000, including local and healthier food. Edible Landscaping In spring 2011, in a moved later recognised by Sustainable Food Cities network and the World Green Building Council it was the first council in the country to encourage urban food growing in its planning guidance, with encouragement to grow on walls, rooftops and balconies. In the twelve months following 44 out of 98 planning applications (45%) proposed food growing as part of development. Examples include a sixth floor raised bed allotment. Hospital redesign partnership working The Greens worked in partnership with the Royal Sussex Hospital to ensure that the proposals for the 420 million rebuild of its Victorian hospital, the city s biggest ever regeneration project, were brought forward speedily and successfully to planning after Business start ups The concentration of start-ups and small and medium enterprises in the city grew while the Greens were in office from 2011 to 2013 by 5% giving it the third highest concentration in the country. In June 2014 it was also rated the third best city in the country for small enterprises with high growth strategies.

10 10 GREEN COUNCILLOR ACHIEVEMENTS Changing the way councils think TRANSPORT: The ambitious plans of Brighton and Hove s Green administration, clearly articulated, meant that it was able to beat other areas in competitions to obtain a total of 24 million of outside transport that meant council tax payers bills were kept to a minimum. The city has proved itself to be a paradigm of excellence, inspiring and serving as a model to guide and stimulate the further development on sustainable mobility initiatives in Europe. Civitas Steps taken 20mph It has introduced the largest contiguous 20mph area in the UK with the whole of Brighton centre covered. After it was implemented, traffic speeds reduced on 74% of the roads, collisions in a 5 month period dropped by 20% and casualties by 19%. Phases 2 and 3 extended 20mph to most of the suburbs. Cycle hub Behind the train station, work has nearly finished on a new three-storey cycle hub with shower and changing facilities, a bike shop, café, cycle repair outlet and bike hire, as well as storage for 500 bikes, free and open 24/7. It cost 900,000 but council tax payers only contributed 100,000. Cycle priority and head-start lights for bikes at junctions. Proper cycle Lanes They built cycle lanes on major arterial routes to segregate bikes from fast traffic. Where this was done cycling increased by 14% in one year. Cycle contraflow On narrower one-way roads, cycle contraflow lanes were created. Floating bus stop Under the Greens, the council has become the first in Britain to introduce a floating bus stop where a cycle lane runs behind it to avoid the buses. (see picture) Travel planning They continued the work of earlier administrations on personal travel planning. Since 2006 some 70,000 people had been visited at home and offered advice. They also introduce eco driving courses showing how people could save petrol. Car club hire vehicle numbers have grown and the city has the third largest fleet of such vehicles in the UK after London and Edinburgh. Improving buses Bus initiatives have included electronic realtime boards at bus stops linked to satellite tracking, smartcard and smartphone ticketing. Junctions for people Dangerous junctions such as Seven Dials and the Vogue Gyratory reconfigured.

11 11 GREEN COUNCILLOR ACHIEVEMENTS Changing the way councils think The Results: Seven Dials junction reconfigured for people European City of the Year: Brighton & Hove was named Europe s City of the Year in September 2014 for its sustainable transport policies by CIVITAS. In 2012 the Campaign for Better Transport named Brighton & Hove the least car dependent city outside London Bus journeys climb Bus usage in the city increased by 5% in 2012 and then by another 3.6% the following year. Bus journeys by Brighton & Hove residents increased from 44.8 million to 46 million, more than residents anywhere else in the UK outside London. It has now doubled in 20 years from 22 million. Air quality improves In the last two years nitrous oxides pollution fell at 44 of 46 monitoring stations in Brighton & Hove. Carbon dioxide emissions dropped. Figures from July 2014 show a further fall in CO2 emissions from transport, from 317 tonnes to 301. Bike city Number of people cycling to work doubled in the 10 years to From 2009 to 2012 there was an average 11% rise in daily cycle journeys across the city. Road injuries drop The latest Dept. of Transport figures showed that casualties on Brighton & Hove s roads fell for the third year running and by just over 18% in the 3 years since the Greens took office. There were 200 fewer people killed and injured in 2013 than in 2011 before the Greens took office. Thanks Brighton, it's been fun. We're ready for anything now: the world on two wheels! Travel writer Joanna Simmons in The Guardian Bitten by the biking bug in Brighton and Hove