“The Green Council” – fact: we don’t have a Green council, the city has a majority Labour-run council

• Since May 2023 we have had a Labour-run council in Brighton & Hove (B&H). Despite what residents might have been told about B&H having a “Green Council” Labour actually won the last three council elections, in 2015, 2019 and 2023. Labour have given the impression this is not the case.Labour have controlled the council for the majority of the last decade.
• In recent years, the Greens were only in minority administration of the council between Aug 2020 – May 2023. Greens took over from Labour in lockdown when their administration collapsed on account of councillors being sacked for antisemitism. 
• This was what is called a “minority administration” which means Greens could not pass any local policies without the support of other parties.

      Bins / missed refuse collections

This has been a long running issue for decades and spans the last three Labour administrations as well as the 2020 – 23 Green administration:

• Greens have long said that this issue was larger than just one party but Labour have used it as a political football at every council election.
• At each of the elections where Labour formed the largest party (2015, 2019, 2023), they promised residents they would sort this issue – then blamed others for the problems. Nothing has improved.
• Greens have always wanted to take the politics out of this challenge and just resolve the issue for residents – no single party has been able to sort it alone.
• Before the local elections in May 2023, then MP Caroline Lucas pushed for an independent legal investigation; this finally lifted the lid on WHY the service is so bad: a toxic work place culture at Cityclean (the council service which collects refuse and recycling) caused by local GMB Union reps.
• The investigation revealed racism, homophobia, bullying and sexual harassment in the workforce; even weapons such as knives and nunchucks were discovered on-site.
• Collection trucks were also sabotaged deliberately.
• An independent report by the King’s Counsel also made clear that “there were close links between the Labour administration and GMB Union reps within the Council and concerns were expressed to me that highly confidential information passed between the administration and GMB reps within the Council.”
• The KC report also revealed that councillors also blocked disciplinary action against GMB reps in question which allowed behaviour to continue. With a well-documented political and financial relationship between Labour and the local GMB union, and Labour now refusing to investigate references to political interference in the KC report, residents can draw their own conclusions about what has been going on.
• All the while Labour have politicised the issue to great advantage at council elections.
• All of the above is verifiable online.

Recycling rates – why are they so bad in Brighton and Hove?

• In 2003 Labour locked the city into a 25 year PFI waste management contract issued with the company Veolia.
• This was later extended to 30 years by the Tories – Greens were the only party to oppose the contract. 
• This contract limits what Brighton and Hove can recycle – so currently plastic pots (e.g. dips), tubs (butter) and trays (ready meals) cannot be recycled locally. 
• Rates are also measured by the weight of recycling so councils that recycle food waste (which is heavy) have much better rates.
• Green councillors have tried to get food waste trials introduced on multiple occasions but have been outvoted by Labour and the Tories on at least three occasions.

• The Government is bringing in new laws which will mean Brighton & Hove will need to widen what it recycles, including pots tubes and trays (PTTs) and food waste by no later than April 2026. 

i360 viewing tower

• Politicians from all parties have supported the i360 project at various points over the last decade, Labour’s blame game does not help to solve this predicament. It employs people.
• It pre dates most Green Cllrs but we need to try and make it a success.
• It irresponsible to keep talking the i360 down because the Labour council thinks it’s politically convenient to distance previous Labour administrations from historic decisions that were made. 
• It’s vital for the administration to focus on where things are out now, and what’s best for the city, rather than political point scoring and attempts to distance Labour from a project it championed at the start and finish.
• With local government finances being so dire because of Tory Government cuts, the truth is that outside investment into seafront regeneration is only realistic option.
• There is no £50 million debt.

City council finance

• Literally days before the Labour administration collapsed in July 2020, Labour’s finance lead (Dan Yates) made quite clear that that the Council’s financial forecast was bleak and desperate, noting that “By the end of this year, the council expects to be about £36 million in the red, almost all as a result of the coronavirus crisis.”
• Greens took over the administration at the Council at the height of the pandemic. Greens took over at THE most precarious time this city has known in living memory, at a point when Labour councillors forecast a £36 million overspend – this was as low as £3m by the time Labour took over in May 2023. 
• Greens and Labour know that the real problem is 14 years of Tory cuts to council budgets. 
• Sian will push for more funding for councils, at present Labour have not committed to reverse cuts to local budgets. Ends

The post Our city: facts not myths appeared first on Brighton & Hove Green Party.

Picture from December 2023: St Bartholomew’s Church of England Primary School (central Brighton). Greens call for a change of course, as children are left without school places for September start of the school year.

20 June 2024: The Labour city council administration repeatedly assured parents that all children from St Bartholomew’s (Brighton) and St Peter’s Community Primary School (Hove) would be accommodated in nearby schools in the new academic year.

Greens have hit back at Labour’s decision to force two local primary schools to close after the Office of the Schools Adjudicator released a determination:

[1] Greens suceeded in overturning the Labour-run council’s decision to close St Bartholomew’s Primary School at the end of this school year in July.

The city council decision to close the school in December 2024 has been made after nine pupils – several of whom are understood to have Special Educational Needs – were unable to secure a school place for the upcoming academic year.

Since Labour first proposed the closures last November, Green councillors have consistently stood with parents, carers, and teachers of children at the school, criticising the speed with which the decisions were being made and raising concerns that not enough time was being given for children to transition to new schools.

At a meeting of the Children, Families and Schools Committee in January, Greens also called on Labour to produce a report exploring the feasibility of moving Bright Start Nursery to St Bartholomew’s.

[2] A solution which could have saved both institutions and reflects what is now national Labour Party policy.

[3] All Labour Councillors on the Committee voted against even considering this as an option.

Green councillors are calling on the Labour administration to use this as an opportunity to reconsider the closure of St Bartholomew’s Primary School and to bring a report to the next Full Council meeting, exploring how the school could be saved by relocating Bright Start Nursery to unused classroom space. They reversed the administration’s previous decisions to cut under two’s provision and reduce the overall number of places at Bright Start.

Cllr Sue Shanks, former Opposition Spokesperson on the Children, Families, and Schools Committee said: “Green Councillors welcome this decision by the Schools Adjudicator, which comes closer to reflecting what school staff, governors, and parents have been asking for from the very start.

Labour’s decision was rushed through with little consideration for children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities, many of whom would have been left without a school to go to this September, had the Schools Adjudicator not stepped in.

“We urge Labour to use this as an opportunity to reconsider their disastrous decision to force this school to close. Now is the time for them to produce a report on our proposal to save both St Bartholomew’s and Bright Start Nursery, which they refused to even consider earlier this year. It’s not too late to correct course and do what is best for local families.”

Ends

NOTES 

[1] Office of the Schools Adjudicator Determination: https://view.officeapps.live.com/op/view.aspx?src=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.brighton-hove.gov.uk%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2Ffiles%2F2024-06%2FSt%2520Bartholomew%2527s%2520CofE%2520Primary%2520School%2520Determination.docx&wdOrigin=BROWSELINK https://www.brightonandhovenews.org/2024/06/17/school-slated-for-closure-gets-six-month-reprieve/

[2] Green Councillors’ Notice of Motion (p19): https://democracy.brighton-hove.gov.uk/documents/b39210/Addendum%201%2022nd-Jan-2024%2016.00%20Children%20Families%20Schools%20Committee.pdf?T=9

[3] National Labour Party policy on childcare: https://labour.org.uk/updates/stories/labours-plan-for-childcare-and-early-education/

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Voters across Sussex, including Brighton & Hove, will go to the polls on Thursday 2 May to pick the new Police and Crime Commissioner, the same day as two Brighton & Hove City Council by-elections (in Queen’s Park and Kemptown) caused by the resignation of two former Labour councillors.

The Green Party has chosen former BBC journalist Jonathan Kent as its candidate for Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner

The Green Party candidate won 13.4% of the vote Sussex-wide when the post was last contested in 2021 – although it is likely that Green support in Brighton & Hove, where there is strong support for the Greens, was proportionally higher.

Jonathan said: “We know what the best policing looks like because so many officers deliver that day-in day-out. I want everyone who lives in Sussex to be able to expect that regardless of the colour of their skin, background, gender or [other] orientation.”

“I’ll focus on preventing crime and violence, women’s and girls’ safety and support better funding for youth services while working to ensure we have excellent officers who are welcomed to the heart of every community and every home.”

Siân Berry, Green MP candidate for Brighton Pavilion constituency, said: “Green members in Sussex have made a great choice. Jonathan is exactly the sort of person needed for a position like this.

“We are in strong agreement about the need to prevent crime in the first place, and that’s why funding for youth services is so crucial and will be such a big part of his campaign.

“Youth services have been undervalued and undercut under this Conservative government, but this is where the investment is needed.”

The Green Party believes that criminal justice cannot be divorced from its wider social context. The party has long argued for more focus on crime prevention and the use of restorative justice, an approach increasingly being adopted by police services across the country including in Sussex.

Restorative justice puts the emphasis on the offender making amends to the victim of their crime and aims to avoid pushing people into a life of reoffending.

Jonathan grew up and lives in Ticehurst in Sussex and went to local state schools before reading philosophy and theology at Oxford University.

As a former journalist and foreign correspondent, he campaigned on issues such as human rights, miscarriages of justice, the treatment of migrant workers and sex trafficking.

Jonathan said: “People are really struggling at the moment – the NHS, schools, transport and the other services we rely on have been run down; the cost of living is rising and incomes aren’t stretching as far as they used to.”

“Wildlife and nature are struggling too. Our beaches and rivers are polluted, habitats are being destroyed. At the same time countries that should be finding ways to work together to stop our climate spinning out of control are increasingly in conflict with one another instead.”

“It doesn’t have to be this way. Greens believe that the answer lies in working together across social divides and party lines to build a Britain and a future in which everyone matters.”

ends

For more info on voter registration for the Police & Crime Commissioner election and how to make your vote count, visit Brighton & Hove City Council’s election pages

The post Greens select former BBC journalist as Sussex Police & Crime Commissioner candidate appeared first on Brighton & Hove Green Party.

The petition, started by Green Party Councillor Pete West, states:

“The government and parliament were given a mandate to negotiate a Brexit deal for Britain. However, they have no right to impose a final deal. The people must have the final say on whether or not to accept the proposals on the table.

“We, the undersigned people of Brighton & Hove, call on the Government to allow the people the chance to have our say on the final terms of the Brexit deal negotiated with the EU, including the possibility that no deal may have been reached.”

The petition is still open and is available to sign:
https://action.greenparty.org.uk/bhgp-eu-petition

The request of the petition will now be heard formally at a meeting of Full Council on 18th October, after the number of signatories received reached 1,399 – exceeding the threshold required to trigger a debate in the council chamber.

Nationwide support for a People’s Vote is estimated to have grown steadily since the EU referendum. Polling shows that more than 100 constituencies which previously backed leaving the EU would now vote to remain. A YouGov poll of trade unions GMB, Unite and Unison also found that a majority of union members are in favour of a People’s Vote. Brighton and Hove City Council became the first in England to formally endorse a call for a ‘People’s Vote’ after a proposal from the Green Group of Councillors.

At the next Full Council meeting (October 18th), Councillors will also vote on Green proposals demanding a thorough investigation into ‘the impact that Brexit will have on Brighton and Hove and its council services.’ Green Councillors fear that the risks posed to the city and council services by leaving the European Union have to date not been adequately assessed. Recent reports have suggested that around 250 local projects could stand to lose EU funding after Brexit. 

Councillor Pete West commented:

“The reaction to this petition on the doorsteps of Brighton and Hove has been phenomenal. People are exasperated and demand a say on the Brexit deal. With less than six months to go until ‘exit date’, residents have no sense of what the future holds. They have been frozen out of the debate – and worse still, told bare-faced lies about issues as crucial as extra funding for our NHS. The Conservative Government and Labour Opposition are equally divided over what, if any, ‘plan’ will be in place and what it should say.

“Greens have been clear from the outset that a ‘People’s Vote’ on the final deal is needed – we have led the way. We will also join the thousands expected to march in support for a People’s Vote in London on 20th October. Putting the deal – or no deal – to the people is the only way to reconcile the divisions of opinion between Parliament and the nation and prepare us for whatever future we face together.”   

Councillor Ollie Sykes, Green Group Finance Lead, added:

“The gap between national politicians’ words and reality has never seemed greater than during this damaging Brexit paralysis. The logical, moral and democratic way out of this Conservative-created morass is to hold a People’s Vote. We were the first Council in the country to call for this almost a year ago and demands for a People’s Vote are now coming from all sides.

“Of course we still don’t know what’s going to happen and Greens are very concerned about the immediate and longer term impact of any form of Brexit on the country, and on our city. We think there’s more we could do to prepare the city and the council itself for the worst scenarios. Other coastal towns have seen local acceptance of the Euro currency and we think this idea could be assessed by businesses and also by our council to see if it makes financial sense.”

—

The ‘People’s Vote March for the Future,’ will take place on 20th October in central London. https://www.peoples-vote.uk/march

Councillor Phélim Mac Cafferty also tabled a question on the subject of Brexit to a meeting of Policy, Resources and Growth Committee, 11th October:

“[…] Will the Chair of the Committee urgently write to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government and Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union asking them to share with the City Council the assessments their departments have written about how the city and the region’s economy will be affected by Brexit; what assurances their departments will give to residents that everything is being done by their departments and the government to mitigate risks to jobs and livelihoods; and that in the absence of such mitigation that they will aid and compensate city residents whose income is lost through Brexit.”

Chair of the Committee, Cllr Dan Yates, agreed to the request.

The post Renewed push for a say on Brexit deal as 1,399 residents sign People’s Vote petition coming to Council appeared first on Brighton & Hove Green Party.

Next weekend marks one of the biggest in the city’s calendar as we come together to celebrate our LGBT community for Pride. As we did for Trans Pride on 21st July, Greens will once again march with all those who stand together for equality and liberation.

This year is also the 40th anniversary of the iconic rainbow flag. Designed by artist Gilbert Baker, the flag was first flown at San Francisco’s Pride march in 1978. Now a celebrated symbol of the LGBT community, it is rooted in activism. Following the tragic assassination of the first openly gay US politician Harvey Milk, demand for the flags soared. Today we wear the symbol with pride – but despite progress, we know that our activism must continue, as one in four LGBT people have experienced violent hate crime. Four in ten British people believe gay sex is unnatural. Homophobia is legitimised in government with the partnership between the Conservative Party and the stridently homophobic Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), who have blocked equal marriage in Northern Ireland. The noisy march for equality goes on beyond Pride weekend.

And this is why: Theresa May’s Government’s continued policy of creating a ‘hostile environment’ for migrants has exacerbated LGBT persecution. Data published by the UK Government last November revealed that thousands of gay, lesbian, bisexual and trans asylum seekers have been refused entry into the UK from countries where they will face prison, violence or even death. Not a single applicant from India or Sri Lanka, where homosexuality is illegal, were accepted by the Home Office.

Worse still, asylum seekers have described facing intense discrimination in the process of making their claims, including being asked for explicit pictures to ‘prove’ their sexuality. People whose claims are rejected are then subject to detention centres, places that national charity Stonewall found were “little sanctuary from homophobic, biphobic and transphobic abuse.” In a country where homosexuality has been ‘decriminalised’ we are still locking people up for being LGBT.

As the city becomes a show of colour and celebration we should take the time to remember that LGBT people at home and abroad still face bigotry and violence. On Saturday we must march for them. As we celebrate the progress made in the fight for LGBT equality, we are reminded by the rainbow flag in its 40^th year that it is the dedication of campaigners and courage of communities, refusing to be silent, that has made progress on LGBT rights possible.

Greens will continue to campaign for an end to the brutal ‘hostile environment’ policy of this Conservative Government that punishes those already vulnerable for who they love. We will campaign until we have lasting equality both here and abroad.

I wish everyone a safe, happy and sustainable Pride.

The post 40 years of the rainbow flag: why we still need to wear the symbol with pride appeared first on Brighton & Hove Green Party.

Councillor Leo Littman

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We can all do our bit to reduce litter: take our rubbish home, or even better, don’t take rubbish with us in the first place. However, it is the Council’s responsibility to keep our green spaces clean and tidy, and this early May bank holiday they failed horribly.

30,000 visitors flocked to the city and tourists and residents were drawn into parks and open spaces by the sunshine. Yet instead of being a reminder of the Brighton Fringe & Festival’s fantastic cultural and arts offer, the bank holiday also became a reminder of the Council’s failure to deal with waste. 20 tonnes of it was left behind on Brighton beach alone.

Any influx of visitors in Brighton and Hove can cause a surge in litter. With good weather forecast at the start of May, it should have been clear that extra resources to manage waste collection would be needed.

Yet Councillor Gill Mitchell, the Labour lead on Environment, said that ‘extra staff resources would be in place by the end of May and beginning of June.’ Talk about shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted!

The bank holiday litter issue belies a much bigger problem. This is not the fault of City Clean and City Parks workers, who spend hours painstakingly picking up rubbish overflowing from inadequate bins; it’s the Council’s Labour administration who cut their budgets too hard.

Complaints from residents about litter, bins and fly tipping problems now appear in my inbox on almost a daily basis. They eclipse practically all other complaints received by myself and my fellow Green Councillors.

Residents are clearly frustrated with overflowing bins and months of delayed bin collections. They have raised concerns about the impact of rubbish on our environment and our tourist economy. On top of the rising number of unsightly graffiti ‘tags’ that now cover buildings across the city, it is easy to see why residents and conservation societies are increasingly fed up.

There is no doubt that hardworking and committed staff – like so many public service workers hit hard by ruthless austerity cuts – are being asked to do more with fewer resources. Last autumn we heard that refuse collection trucks were available in the depot but with no staff to drive them. Cuts to the dedicated City Clean team by the Labour Council have gone too far, too fast and the service is struggling to keep up with demand.

Rubbish recycling figures

The solution to some of this does not rest solely on providing more bins. Councils in England spend around £852m per year on waste collection. As recent documentary Blue Planet made clear, we all need to reduce our waste at the source, dispose of it responsibly – and be helped to recycle. 35% of fish caught off the British coast have plastic in their gut and 80% of the ocean plastic comes from the land.

Yet despite being a coastal city, in Brighton and Hove only a small amount of plastic can be collected for recycling – not pots, tubs or trays, whereas other Councils manage to recycle so much more. These restrictions are the result of a 25-year long contract struck under a previous Labour administration with the waste company Veolia.

Residents want to recycle more – but Labour have failed to challenge this contract. With 17 years of it to go, their inaction means the city will continue to lag behind on recycling. Just this week the Environmental Services Association said that the UK will struggle to meet targets for household recycling ‘due to a historic lack of funding and policy support in England.’ We can’t afford waste – and we can’t afford to waste time.

Under the previous administration, recycling levels dropped due to missed collections during a strike sparked by the equalisation of gender pay. Five years on, recycling figures are still appalling. What is the current administration’s excuse?

Proposals put forward for a plastic-free city by the Greens last November are moving at a snail’s pace under Labour. The city will wait until at least July before news on important changes, such as prohibiting the use of single-use plastics at city events, or ending the practice of purchasing unnecessary plastics in the Council’s supply chain. Although 30% or more of the refuse collected and sent for incineration in Newhaven is food, Labour voted against using money Greens put back in to the budget to kick-start a food waste collection service.

Greens set out a budget plan for a cleaner, greener city that also included weekend, year-round emptying of bins in city centre parks. Again, Labour voted against these proposals in coalition with the Conservatives. Their other attempts to tackle the problem – such as the 3GS littering enforcement agents – have proven to be deeply unpopular, fining people for putting things in the wrong bin; and with no remit to deal with the vast amount of litter left on the beach.

A rubbish litter strategy

Help certainly won’t come from the Conservative Government – who published a ‘litter strategy’ that ultimately puts the responsibility for clean streets on seemingly endless volunteers, instead of using available powers to encourage big companies to stop creating useless packaging, or reversing years of cuts to Council budgets.

The city needs a stronger strategy for reducing waste. Greens have led the way on banning single-use plastics. We are calling for an Environmental Impact Charge – so that huge events pay back to our city and contribute to clear up the mess that the extra footfall often leaves behind. We want to see a timetable for action that sets out the options for retro-fitting our recycling facilities to take more plastics, something that other local councils and local companies have been doing for many years.

We live in a city full of people already taking the lead on this – our fantastic small businesses and local trailblazers – like the Food Partnership, Claire Potter Design, HiSbE, Surfers Against Sewage, the Tempest Inn and other local groups are already pioneering new and innovative ways to deal with waste.

It was a Labour Council which tied the city into a 25-year contract which handed control of what we as a city are allowed to recycle to a private multi-national company. It was another Labour Council which cut the budgets of CityClean and CityParks to the point where they can no longer keep the city or our parks clean. In between, Labour prevented the Greens from trialling food waste collection schemes.

Dan Yates, the new Labour Leader of the Council recently wrote: “Unfortunately it appears beaches do not keep themselves clean, nor do parks, or even our streets.” No, Dan; they don’t. That, as a basic public service, is your job, and you’ve failed.

One thing is clear; whether it’s allowing residents to recycle what they want to recycle (be that plastic not shaped into bottles; or their food waste), or keeping our streets and public spaces clean and tidy, Labour are simply not up to the job.

The post Labour failing to get a grip on bins and litter appeared first on Brighton & Hove Green Party.

Convenor of the Green Group of Councillors, Councillor Phélim Mac Cafferty, commented:

“Labour’s Council leader has been ousted by his own divided party. But look around the city and signs of Labour’s self-implosion are everywhere. Graffiti, grime and litter have spiralled out of control. Plans for the Royal Pavilion are in tatters. School catchments reversed after huge public outcry. Despite pledging to end rough sleeping, Labour has failed to get a grip on homelessness, as temperatures plummet.

“At last week’s budget Labour made a deal with the Tories to pass on £12m of cuts while hiking Council tax by 6%. Labour voted down Green proposals to reverse cuts and provide more emergency homeless accommodation.
Instead of opposing Conservative austerity, plots to boot out their leader have been given priority.

“Greens are focused on making Brighton and Hove a city fit for the future. Our concern, is as ever, for residents, who will continue to suffer the consequences of the Labour party’s incompetence.

“What should worry everyone is that the favourite to replace Warren, Dan Yates, as Labour’s lead on health has made no effort to oppose cuts and the privatisation of our precious NHS. Everyone who supports our health service will be alarmed to hear this. Tweedledum will be replaced by Tweedledee.”

 
—
In a blog post on his resignation, Warren Morgan stated he “would have wished to lead the Labour group […] However, the local Labour Party and others have made it clear they do not want me to do so.“

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