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In this issue

Your vote could make the difference!
Bob Gledhill: candidate profile
Important election information
Green news and action from the last year
"We're backing Bob Gledhill"
Save the Vauxhall Street Post Office: campaign update
Norwich named as greenest city
Tesco Appeal submitted
Manifesto summary
Strong Green prospects

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Your vote could make the difference

At last year's local elections the Green Party missed out on becoming the second party on the City Council by just one vote in one ward. This year the Green Party has a great chance of gaining seats and increasing the Green influence over important policies that are decided at City Hall. There are currently ten Green City Councillors, forming a large opposition group at City Hall. They are already making an impact but it is clear that with more Green Councillors elected much more could be achieved.

In your area (Nelson Ward) the Green Party holds all three City Council seats and the County Council seat. Adrian Ramsay, Claire Stephenson and Andrew Boswell are not up for election this year. Help build a Greener Norwich: please re-elect Bob Gledhill.

If you need to contact the Green Party ahead of the election or on election day please call us on (01603) 611909.

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Bob Gledhill: candidate profile

Bob, who lives in Nelson Ward on Sandringham Road, has been a City Councillor for the area since 2004. He knows the ward well and can regularly be seen on the streets visiting residents. Bob is a member of Friends of the Earth and has actively supported several of the group's campaigns, including GM Free Britain. Bob is a former teacher of geography and English as a foreign language.

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Green news and action from the last year

Here is a small selection of issues on which the Green Party has been campaigning over the last year. It is clear that, even as an opposition group, Green Councillors are making an impact and with more Greens elected much more can be achieved.

May 2007

Green Councillors influence the new City Council procurement policy requiring the Council to purchase products that are Fair Trade, recycled, light on energy use and not tested on animals.

July 2007

Following lobbying from Green Councillors, flashing lights are installed on the Earlham Road zebra crossing (by Park Lane) and elsewhere to make crossings in the city more visible to drivers.

Following a request from Green Councillors new trees are planted outside Somerfield by Recreation Road to act as a noise barrier between the loading bay and nearby homes.

November 2007

A pedestrian and cycle pathway through the old hospital site is opened at last, making access to St Stephen's Street easier for residents in the Unthank Road area. Green Councillors are still pressing for a more permanent path.

Following lobbying from residents and an 800-signature petition the Norwich Highways Agency Committee agrees to keep the push-button crossing on Unthank Road by Gloucester Street.

December - March 2008

December: The City Council rejects a fourth planning application from Tesco for a store in Unthank Road. At the next Planning Committee meeting LibDem and Conservative Councillors try to re-open the debate but are defeated by a majority vote. After some discussion, the Council decides to rigorously defend its decision at appeal.

January 2008

Green Councillors support local parents' campaign against County Council plans for the number of special educational needs places available in Norwich to be reduced. A decision on the proposals is due in July.

February 2008

The City Council adopts a Green Party proposal for a fund to be established for renewable energy and energy efficiency measures in new housing.

New street trees are planted in the College Road and Christchurch Road area. Green Councillors call for more replacement trees to be planted in the next planting season after some roads where trees have been lost are left out of the tree replacement work.

The Green Party challenges City Council support for 30,000 homes to be built in Greater Norwich over the next twenty years, mainly on greenfield sites. Green Councillors call on the Labour administration to stand up to Government targets and concentrate on smaller-scale building of affordable housing.

The city centre recycling banks now take plastic bottles - but Green Councillors say that many improvements are still needed to local recycling facilities.

April 2008

The County Council rules out bringing in a congestion charge for Norwich but says that it wants to go ahead with the £116 million Northern Distributor Road. Green Councillors say this money could much better be spent on road safety measures, public transport improvements and cycle lanes.

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Save the Vauxhall Street Post Office: campaign update

Earlier this month Green Councillors attended a demonstration against the proposed closure of Vauxhall Street Post Office. They have also been encouraging residents to respond to the consultation. A public meeting has been organised to discuss the proposed closure: Friday 9th May, 5:30-6:30pm at the Vauxhall Centre, Johnson Place (off Vauxhall Street near Chapel Field Road). The Green Councillors will be in attendance.

The Green Councillors have also been highlighting some of the reasons behind the proposed Post Office closures in Norwich:

• The Government plans to close 2500 branches nationally.
• Labour, LibDem and Conservative Euro-MPs have voted for an EU Directive that will prevent Governments subsidising Post Office branches that are not making a profit, even if they are important local facilities. The Labour, LibDem and Conservative Parties are therefore effectively supporting Post Office closures. Green Euro-MPs opposed this Post Offices Directive. The Green Party believes that Post Offices are crucial to local communities and that branches should be empowered to offer a wider range of services.

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Norwich named as greenest city

Norwich has been named as the greenest city in the country in a survey by Local Life Limited. The survey's authors said that the number of Green Councillors in Norwich is one of the reasons for the city finishing first.

Bob Gledhill, Green Party Councillor and Candidate for Nelson Ward said: "I am pleased that Norwich has done so well in this survey. Norwich is green in many respects, including the valued green spaces and trees and the high proportion of independent and local businesses. We need to protect these things but we can't be complacent. There is still a long way to go in ensuring that all residents have access to truly comprehensive local recycling facilities, that there are high energy efficiency standards in new buildings and that there is cheap and reliable public transport."

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Tesco Appeal submitted

Tesco has now formally submitted an appeal against the City Council decision to reject its latest application for a store on Unthank Road. The City Council has confirmed that it will be 'rigorously defending its decision'. It is likely to be several months before the appeal hearing takes place. The Green Party Councillors will monitor the situation and submit evidence to the appeal process. Updates will be included in future newsletters.

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Manifesto summary

Green Party Councillors and members launching the party's
local election campaign outside the Forum earlier this month.

Among the policies that the Green Party is putting forward at this City Council election are:

• Pressing for a Quality Bus Contract, so the local councils can ensure reasonably-priced and reliable bus services.
• Preventing development on land with high levels of flood risk and land that is important for wildlife. Protecting and enhancing green spaces.
• Expanding doorstep recycling facilities and support the reuse, repair and recycling of materials through a Resource Recovery Park.
• Setting up area committees with local budgets, where ward councillors have real power to influence what happens in their areas (whether they are from the ruling party or not) and where local people can come along and have their say.
• Establishing more farmers' markets, to support local producers.
• Requiring a higher level of affordable housing in all new developments and ensuring that Council housing remains in public ownership.
• Bringing those services currently run by CityCare back under the control of the City Council so councillors can have more influence over ensuring a good service for residents.

The full Green Party manifesto is available on our election pages.

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Strong Green prospects

Photo: Councillor Bob Gledhill (right)
with Green MEP Caroline Lucas.

On 3rd April Green Party MEP and Principal Speaker Caroline Lucas visited Norwich to launch the national Green Party campaign for the local elections. Norwich was chosen for the launch because of Norwich Green Party's strong prospects at these elections.

At the launch, Caroline Lucas talked of how all parties now speak green language but that only the Green Party has the policies for delivering green measures on the ground. She outlined some achievements of Green Councillors in different parts of the country, including in Norwich where Green Councillors have secured a commitment to renewable energy for new housing to help tackle fuel poverty and climate change.

Last year the Green Party was just one vote in one ward away from becoming the second party on the City Council. The Greens are hoping to make this breakthrough this year. The election of more Green Councillors would mean more Green influence over key policies decided at City Hall.

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Published by Tom Dylan, 123 St Leonard's Road, Norwich, NR1 4JN
on behalf of Bob Gledhill, 4 Sandringham Road, Norwich, NR2 3RY