Jenny Jones, Green Party member of the London Assembly and former deputy mayor of London, is in Norwich today supporting the Green Party's campaign to become the main party on a UK local authority for the first time ever.
The so-called "mega-by-election" has been scheduled as a result of a court decision earlier this year. The elections of 9th September could see Norwich Greens become the biggest party on the city council - having since 2008 been the first ever Green Party council group to form the official opposition, with more Green councillors than Conservatives and Lib Dems combined.
Supporting local businesses
A major strand in the Greens' campaign is support for local small businesses. Jenny Jones AM will meet leading members of the Green Party campaign team and the "Buy Local" network, who together are opposing a mini-supermarket development which many locals believe will harm existing smaller shops.
Jenny Jones is deputy chair of the planning and housing committee of the London Assembly, which this summer published Cornered Shops - a new report calling for better protections for small businesses under strengthened planning powers.
Greens across the country are playing a leading role in supporting the local economy during the recession:
- Lancaster's indoor market was saved through a campaign led by local Green councillors. A Green Party motion to council won the support of Labour and other councillors to ensure that tenants' leases were renewed. The decision meant that local jobs, tourism and food production were saved, and proved popular with local shoppers who enjoyed the choice and healthy goods provided by the market (1).
- In Camden, the local Green Party carries out an annual survey of local shopping streets in Dartmouth Park and Highgate. The survey measures how many vacant shops there are, how many have recently closed, and how many are soon to close. This helps the party to understand the particular problem areas, and most effectively campaign to protect local businesses. In 2006 for instance, Camden Green Party called for people to use local shops and avoid chain-stores, as a response to plans for the opening of yet another Tesco in Kentish town (2).
- In St Albans, Greens supported local campaigners who demanded "local business zones" which would offer protection against unaffordable rates (3).
- Plans for the construction of a new Asda in Shipley, in Bradford, were strongly opposed by local Green councillors, saying the store would undermine local businesses which were already struggling in the worst economic recession for a century (4).
- The York Green Party has produced a guide called "Local Shops for Local People" which promotes community traders. The Greens have delivered this street-by-street to all local residents (5).
- The Lewisham Green Party has encouraged the use of reusable cotton shopping bags bearing the logo "Shop Local in Ladywell." As well as promoting local businesses the reusable bags cut down on plastic waste. Local Green councillor Sue Luxton organised a competition at a local primary school to design a logo for the fairly-traded, organic cotton carriers (6).
Notes
1. See http://northwest.greenparty.org.uk/region/northwest/news/lancasters-indoor-market-saved-by-greens.html
2. See http://camden.greenparty.org.uk/localsites/camden/news/newstescokentish.html
3. See http://stalbans.greenparty.org.uk/news/111
4. See http://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/news/4372589.Asda_store_plan_draws_criticism/
5. See http://york.greenparty.org.uk/news/21
6. See http://lewisham.greenparty.org.uk/localsites/lewisham/news/new-bags-to-promote-ladywell-shops-and-reduce-plastic-waste.html