In the wake of record election results for the Greens this weekend [1], Caroline Lucas MP has said the government must set out what action it will take to tackle the climate and ecological crises in tomorrow’s Queen’s Speech.
Ahead of the speech, the MP for Brighton Pavilion has put forward a list of “Five Bills to Thrive” [2] which would make fundamental changes to society, including the creation of millions of Green jobs, for the best for people and the planet.
Meanwhile, the Greens have also called on the government to introduce the long-overdue social care bill and halt the photo ID requirement for elections set to be confirmed in the speech tomorrow, despite the fact that in 2019 there was just one reported conviction of voter fraud. [3]
Lucas said:
“The surge in votes we’ve seen for the Green Party this weekend shows that people up and down the country recognise the urgent need for real action on the environment, and that this can be done whilst dramatically improving the quality of peoples’ lives.
“The government must use the Queen’s Speech tomorrow to put us on the right track to addressing the huge challenges of climate and ecological breakdown.
“If the government was serious about making life better for all, then tomorrow we would see a Green New Deal to create millions of Green jobs alongside Bills to help the UK meet its climate targets and shift the focus of our economic model away from relentless GDP growth and towards the health of people and planet.”
Meanwhile, Green Party peer Natalie Bennett called for the Prime Minister to deliver on his promise to introduce a Social Care Bill.
Baroness Bennett said:
“Where is the social care bill that Boris Johnson told us was 'oven ready' from the steps of Downing Street on day one as Prime Minister?
“The Conservatives are letting down the vulnerable elderly and those who care for them with inadequate pay and conditions yet again.
"Meanwhile we have plans for our NHS that see it being handed over on a platter to the disastrous American for-profit healthcare providers.
"This is a Queen's Speech from which a few are set to profit, while the rest of us pay, with our chance to exert democratic controls over the government even further reduced by deployment of US-style voter suppression tactics in the form of photo-ID requirements."
ENDS
Notes
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https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2021/may/10/queens-speech-photo-id-future-elections-social-care