Exeter Green Party Manifesto City Council Elections 2016

Transcription

1 Exeter Green Party Manifesto City Council Elections 2016 The Green Party is the truly progressive voice in both local and national politics. The Green Party is bringing creative thinking and positive solutions to Councils across Britain. We want to bring that change to Exeter. Many of Exeter Green Party s proposals over the years are now being implemented. For example, in 2010 we called for solar panels to be installed on Council property and we are pleased more roads in Exeter have become 20mph limits following campaigns we promoted. Elected Green Councillors are committed to: Putting people and the environment first Challenging austerity and generating income to reduce the impact of Government cuts Building a prosperous and resilient local economy Prioritising people s health and wellbeing Achieving sensible development of the city within physical, social and environmental limits Keeping the city moving, sustainably Reducing waste moving from incineration to zero waste Making our Council more transparent, democratic and accountable. The election of Green Councillors will bring fresh solutions, help create a balanced City Council to hold any dominating group on the Council to account. Greens Councillors will provide robust challenge, raise the quality of debate and decision making and push the council to operate in a more open, responsive and transparent way.

2 2 Putting people and the environment first Commit the City to a local carbon reduction plan showing how Exeter will become a zero carbon city by Robustly resist the austerity agenda which is cutting essential local services. We will protect public sector jobs and minimise the use of agency staff paid for with public money. Ensure better involvement of communities in civic projects and encourage and support community neighbourhood action. Support initiatives and events that celebrate and strengthen Exeter s diverse and multi-cultural communities and promote inclusion. Pressure the Council to do everything it can to welcome and support refugees to the city. Use the Social Value Act to set a high standard for Council awarded contracts so the Council can work with businesses that pay the Living Wage and where bosses are paid no more than ten times the lowest paid employees and reject zero hours contracts. Promote the introduction of the Living Wage Accreditation Employer Mark to all local employers who pay at least the Living Wage to all employees. Support community led schemes to promote the development and generation of renewable energy. Challenging austerity and generating income to reduce the impact of Government cuts Challenge further cuts to the Council s budget and resist those that will impact on the most vulnerable in our communities. Continue to support action against the bedroom tax and evictions arising as a result of the bedroom tax. Support services which help people deal with debt and crises resulting from welfare cuts. Work to reduce energy demand and improve energy efficiency in City Council buildings and extend renewable energy generation from local authority and other public buildings to cut energy costs and generate income. Reduce rubbish, increase recycling and treat waste as a resource, generating increased income from waste disposal and processing. Reviewing City Council controlled car parks and use pricing to maximise essential income for investment in Council services. Divest the Council s funds from fossil fuels and nuclear and invest in sustainable and renewable opportunities.

3 3 Building a prosperous and resilient local economy Introduce preferential retail business rates, where necessary, to increase the proportion of independent shops run by local business and social enterprises. Secure better local advice and support for small businesses and social enterprises. Ensure local traders voices are heard in shaping economic strategy affecting their local area. Support Exeter Pound, the local currency for Exeter, to boost the local economy, help local businesses thrive and keep money circulating in the community. Stop more clone town Exeter : oppose further expansion of supermarkets and chain stores in the city and out of town retail developments and create local economic centres, especially in new developments. Secure a new market square as part of the redevelopment of the bus station and Sidwell Street area; showcasing the Best of Devon, with an area of flexible units to house an expanded farmers market, craft and artisan use, local businesses, social enterprises and charities and for showcasing Exeter s multiculturalism and diversity. Prioritising people s health and wellbeing Act on air pollution - with a single plan to reduce air pollution which damages people s health and the environment. Create a walking city which prioritises pedestrians and creates an urban environment which is easy and safe to walk through and improves access for people with disabilities. Introduce a coherent cycle network with priority being given to completing missing links and improving dangerous junctions. Protect and enhance the city s parks, and green spaces and support community participation in their management. Implement a proper plan for the protection, management and growth of the City s trees, especially significant mature and locally or rare significant trees. Promote health and wellbeing with measures and facilities such as a new swimming pool. Protect and expand cultural and tourist activities in the city. Increase funding for activities to engage and encourage children and young people, and support the most vulnerable groups in the city including those in debt and women and children seeking refuge from domestic violence.

4 4 Development today as if tomorrow matters Challenge the economic and housing growth assumptions and projections for Exeter and neighbouring areas as outlined in the Core Strategy. Campaign hard for the legal protection of Exeter s remaining green spaces due to their positive impact on health and wellbeing. Ensure developers contribute their fair share to the infrastructure required to cope with the growth of Exeter. Ensure the New Homes Bonus and the neighbourhood portion of the Community Infrastructure Levy is fairly and transparently used to prioritise funding for vital local facilities, such as community buildings, and youth and community services identified by local people as necessary as the result of the planned growth of Exeter. Require full and transparent consultations over proposed greenfield and new developments and for these consultation results to be taken seriously. Invest in social and council housing developments to provide truly affordable zero carbon homes, and proritise housing for the homeless, those in housing need and key workers. Explore imaginative brownfield development initiatives such as turning single storey car parks into affordable low-car housing developments and prioritise bringing empty houses back into use. Expand food growing land within the city and for allotment sites to be afforded permanent protection. Resist planning permission where developments are likely to have a detrimental impact on the quality of life for Exeter residents, for example on allotments, green spaces and the City s ridge lines. Introduce new planning guidance that enables community developed, owned and managed housing co-operatives, community land trusts and co-housing projects which guarantee genuinely affordable housing in perpetuity. Require all new housing developments to be zero carbon to ensure very low energy running costs. Ensure new housing developments are low-car developments. Introduce an ambitious programme of home insulation and installation of renewable energy technologies to address fuel poverty, prioritising the most vulnerable and hard to heat homes. Press for 100% of electricity used in Exeter City Council offices to come from renewable sources.

5 5 Keeping the city moving, sustainably Make the case for sustainable transport measures that tackle Exeter s seriously poor air quality, relieve congestion and help reduce the city s carbon emissions. Push for Exeter to become a 20mph city, making it safer and more conducive for all ages to walk and cycle, and the introduction of self-enforcing 20mph zones to all, and any, residential street where residents support this. Seek the introduction of a workplace parking levy on the city s largest businesses and employers, beginning with parking provision at the Civic Centre as a demonstration model. Ensure income from such a levy is ring-fenced to support sustainable transport initiatives, including initiatives put forward by businesses paying the levy. Expand car clubs into residential areas, reducing the need for car ownership and offering access to a car for those who are unable, or choose not to, own a car. Ensure existing planning guidance for the inclusion of car clubs is implemented. Use the new railway stations across the city, e.g. Newcourt and Marsh Barton, as key interchanges for a more ambitious Devon Metro with new rolling stock, increased frequencies and improved connections to Exeter, e.g. from Cranbrook and Okehampton. Work with Devon County and other District Councils to introduce Link and Ride schemes as an alternative to further Park and Ride. By providing frequent high quality buses along strategic routes into Exeter, with smaller car parks along the route, a greater proportion of journeys can be made by public transport. Invest in a new state of the art Bus and Coach Station as a fit for purpose city centre hub to enable integration with local, regional and national public transport links. Reducing waste moving from incineration to zero waste Argue for the immediate adoption and implementation of a zero waste strategy for the City. Introduce weekly food waste collections from houses and businesses to increase recycling rates and generate energy and income and explore the development of a community owned enterprise to process/compost food waste. Prioritise waste reduction over recycling when considering communication strategies and messaging on waste. Work with householders, businesses and the University in a concerted effort to increase recycling rates from 36% to 60% in the next 4 years. Challenge the flawed decision by Exeter City Council to support incineration in Exeter; make the case for alternatives to future incineration and monitor the impact on health and the environment of the incinerator. Argue for the district heating system to heat public buildings and retrofit existing homes and businesses rather than heating new homes which can be built to high environmental standards.

6 6 Making our council more transparent, democratic and accountable Decentralise decision making and enable local people to be more involved in decisions that directly affect them - as well as the way in which budgets are allocated. Involve communities at an early stage when planning new housing and other major developments. Ensure public services are provided by public sector staff, strengthening accountability and professionalism. Introduce additional planning guidance to ensure the responsibilities of developers towards the community and the environment and which increases community participation in planning new developments. Resist further moves to reduce transparency and scrutiny and increase public participation in local democracy including through meaningful consultations, and engagement, social media, online participation and polling. Publish all Freedom of Information requests and responses and councillors expenses on the Council s website. How can you help Exeter Green Party? You can help by: voting Green in the May 2016 City Council elections displaying a window poster (or something larger!) at election time delivering leaflets in your area joining the Green Party at: making a donation at: to help with the campaign: Contact us info@exetergreenparty.org.uk Telephone: Write to: Exeter Green Party, c/o 42 St David s Hill, Exeter EX4 4DT Join the discussion! Facebook /ExeterGreenParty we have a highly active page. Please Like us! Promoted and published by Chris Dent for and on behalf of Exeter Green Party, 5 North Avenue Exeter EX1 2DU