Paul Steedman, Green Party campaign director for Caroline Lucas's Brighton Pavilion parliamentary bid, told BBC TV this afternoon:
"Open primaries are a good thing in principle. And if the Conservatives are serious about a new kind of politics, they'll agree with the Greens that we need sweeping reforms of British democracy."
But Mr Steedman warned:
"Whoever is selected in this open primary will of course be just another Conservative candidate, and if elected, would vote for all the wrong policies.
"Conversely electing Caroline Lucas - the favourite to win in Brighton Pavilion - will mean putting the Green Party leader into the House of Commons. And as an MP Caroline would fight hard for all the right policies - resisting the proposed spending cuts and pushing for the Green Party's million-jobs economic recovery package."
Paul Steedman pointed out that:
* The Greens came first in the Euro-elections across all three constituencies in the city of Brighton and Hove.
* The Greens have a majority of the councillors in Caroline Lucas's Brighton Pavilion constituency.
* The Greens recently leapfrogged both Labour and the Conservatives to win the Goldsmid by-election in Hove.
"Effective Green policies for more jobs"
Caroline Lucas, Green candidate for Brighton Pavilion, said today:
"I will be putting forward solid policies for more jobs, and better pay for nurses, cleaners and shopworkers, not just City slickers; for an NHS that doesn't leave people in Brighton - or anywhere else - without healthcare because they can't afford prescription charges or dental fees; for a rail network that works - and that people can actually afford to use. I will stand up for all of Brighton's communities, and we're going to show that politics can be about a fair deal for everyone."
Paul Steedman concluded:
"In Brighton Pavilion, it's a straight fight between the Greens and the Conservatives. Every election in the city since the last general election has demonstrated this. The Conservatives are desperate to stop a Lucas victory. They don't want the only female leader of a political party in parliament, breaking up their old boys club. The Conservatives say they'll hold a splashy 'primary' contest to grab headlines, but it will leave our broken political system unchanged. I'm confident Brighton voters will see through this charade to the slash-and-burn Conservative policy of service cuts that will apply, whoever they select."