How the BBC cover their backs
Complaining is usually a frustrating experience. We hope it will be cathartic, perhaps even effective. The BBC is among those grand institutions that, when they respond at all, make clear that your...
View ArticleVote Dowd, Get Miliband?
One of the best things about Caroline Lucas, the Green MP, is her independence from party whips. You can always be sure that she will vote in Parliament for her constituency, for her conscience, and...
View ArticleDelays, cancellations and anger with Southern
Like many commuters, I’ve been getting increasingly fed up with the delays and cancellations from Southern Railways, and the lack of information when things go wrong. So I wrote to the company asking...
View ArticleSouthwark’s housing crisis
Peckham was my first port of call when I moved into London. So it was nice to return there to talk to Southwark Green Party about housing last night. In 2007 I moved into in a slightly grotty flatshare...
View ArticleDoing more than just saving Sedgehill
The battle over Sedgehill School in Lewisham is, on the surface, about opposition to Academy schools. But it also goes much deeper, to the heart of the school system, and the question of the sort of...
View ArticleFalse realism in costing policies
In all the fuss about Natalie Bennett’s unfortunate media interviews, for which she has penned this very strong and courageous apology, we have seen this idea talking hold that governments can cost...
View ArticleFor a publicly owned and accountable NHS
I am backing the NHS Reinstatement Bill, which would roll back NHS privatisation, because I believe in a publicly owned, publicly run and publicly accountable NHS. The Bill would re-establish the...
View ArticleWe should take pride in paying our taxes
Every time I hear someone say “nobody likes paying taxes”, I want to shout: I do! My taxes pay for a civilised society, for schools and roads we all need, and for support to those who face hard times. Tax
View ArticleMaking copyright work for creatives
Years ago I held the obscure title of Spokesperson on Intellectual Property for the Green Party. With the fuss yesterday about our policy on copyright, and the strong likelihood of some attempt to...
View ArticleOpen air hustings in Penge
I’m going to get out on the stump on Penge High Street, and I’m inviting other candidates to join me, after all but one of the open hustings for Lewisham West & Penge have been cancelled. The...
View ArticleAn unexpected journey
What would you do with the money if you saved £1,100 on your energy bill? That question led me on a journey that completely changed the way I approached climate change policy. In 2007 I confronted this...
View ArticleSilver bullets and buckshot
Every so often I get a call from an estate agent. They aren’t looking to sell my home, but let it out. London is a rentier economy, and so rent controls are bitterly resisted. Rent control isn’t a...
View ArticleRich white men aren’t keeping your home cold
A quick look at home insulation tells us the ‘rich white men’ analysis can be a dead end for the Green movement. I didn’t know my parents were involved in the Ecology Party in the years before I was...
View ArticleBuilding homes, not false hope, in London
As the election for the Mayor of London next year looms on the horizon, candidates are pledging to build more homes in the capital. But targets are no use to anybody unless they are backed up with a...
View ArticleWe need a grounded Green strategy
In politics, as in sport and Eurovision, we all like to fit the facts to our pre-conceived ideas. Tribes and factions interpret results as a vindication of their point of view. In London, we, the data...
View ArticleWhat I want in a Green Party leader
As the debate about the next leader of the Green Party shapes up, I’ve been thinking about what I’m looking for in leadership candidates. In part, this article is prompted by comments like this: I want...
View ArticleNothing endures but personal qualities
In May I set out five qualities I was looking for in the next leader of the Green Party. Having read their statements and listened at a hustings, I’ve now decided how I’m going to vote. In ‘Song of...
View ArticleSeven lessons from seven years in City Hall
I’ve been a Green Party member, activist and officer at local, regional and national levels for ten years. But the honour and joy of working full-time for two Green politicians is a rare one in so...
View ArticleGreens are rarely able to seek Common Cause
Don’t think of an elephant! Ever since I read the work of George Lakoff I’ve been fascinated by framing. But a new report by the think tank Green House contains some useful and stimulating critiques of...
View ArticlePolitics is more like jujutsu than tai chi
It is often said by party members that a particular strategy, tactic or policy should be debated at one of the bi-annual conferences. The most obvious recent example is the issue of progressive...
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