Liberty Festival in Stroud Saturday 15th September

The Stroud and District Access Group are putting on what could be the first Liberty Festival outside London. It is all about disability awareness and rights....'Deaf Diva' Caroline Parker who performed at the opening ceremony of the Paralympics will be here in Stroud to perform. There is also a host of other activities planned including storytelling, Cotswold Chef Rob Rees, wheelchair dance, films with one introduced by Glos Voices and another made with police on Disability Hate Crime, a BSL workshop, a participatory photography event plus there will be BSL interpreters available on the day.

This is great that Stroud is leading the way on this - raising awareness about disability. The Festival comes after the Paralympics and a couple of Stroud demos about the cuts to disability benefits and Atmos - see here.

It is of course Eco-Renovation Open Homes weekend (see this years homes here) but take time out for that to go along to the Sub Rooms.

The history to 'Liberty' is that it began in 2002 with a commitment by the Mayor of London to stage a festival for the European Year of Disabled People. The first Liberty Festival took place on 7 September 2003 and was from the beginning planned in partnership with organisations led by disabled and Deaf people. Back then Trafalgar Square was chosen as the venue and led to significant improvements in access arrangements.

In 2007, Liberty took a new direction with the inclusion of creative zones each curated by Deaf and disabled artists. The zones included Music and Dance; Carnival; Aerial and Circus; Street Arts; Visual Arts and Film; Cabaret and Comedy and a Children's Area. This was a huge undertaking with many hundreds of artists and more - it was also a huge success.....well now Stroud's version of Liberty is set to roll on Saturday 15th September. Don't miss!!

'Building and Equal Society' conference

Date: 21st July 2012   Venue: Forest Green Rovers, Nailsworth. Time:  10.00 a.m. to 4.30 p.m.  Promoted by Stroud District Green party and Stroud Labour Party.

'The rise of neo-liberal political and economic thinking in the 1980’s and 1990’s meant that egalitarian ideas disappeared from public debate and those with a strong sense of justice became – in effect – closet egalitarians. It is now time egalitarians returned to the public arena.’ Richard Wilkinson and Kate Picket (2009) The Spirit Level, p298

"This Conference is an opportunity for egalitarians to discuss the challenges we face in creating an equal society and exploring the ideas we need to build solutions. We shall be examining the role social and economic policy can play in building equality and how local democracy can re-vitalise itself as the champion of an equal and participative society. Anyone who is committed to equality and keen to explore these ideas with like-minded people is invited to our conference."

There will be some great speakers; the Red Pepper speaker, Davy Jones, is a Green Party member from Brighton - see the link for full details of this key local event: www.equalityconference.org.uk

Hate Crime In Glos: 4 films look at the issues

Picture on wall at the conference

I recently attended the Gloucestershire Hate Crime Conference on Saturday 24th March 2012 In Gloucester to raise awareness of hate crime. Well this weekend I put together bits of films from the presentations - they hopefully give a flavour of the day - but if you want to see an excellent film that covers the issues then do not miss the acclaimed film by the Gloucestershire Hate Crime Partnership and the National Star College at: http://stroudcommunity.tv/hate-crime-in-gloucestershire/

Hate crime is a term which covers a range of crimes founded on prejudice based on race, religion, homophobia, transgender, disability and age. Last year more than 50,000 hate crimes were reported across England, Wales and Northern Ireland last year and the Crown Prosecution Service, prosecuted 15,284 hate crimes – 10% more than the previous year.



The presentations at the conference covered a whole range of issues. These three films contain some of the highlights; apologies if editing has not helped in understanding the presentations. 

1/3 Is Hate Crime Legislation Unfair? A clip from the keynote speaker Roger Coulson Director of Equality Partnership – includes brief overview of work by Dr Paul Iganski. See: http://stroudcommunity.tv/is-hate-crime-legislation-unfair-hate-crime-conference-1-of-3/

2/3 Why we need the Human Rights Act? Another clip from the talk Roger Coulson. See:
http://stroudcommunity.tv/why-we-need-the-human-rights-act-hate-crime-conference-2-of-3/

3/3 Hate Crime; numbers, definitions and more. Keynote speaker Roger Coulson plus clips from other speakers,  Robin Agascar MBE from GAYGLOS and Chief Superintendent Nigel Avron. See: http://stroudcommunity.tv/hate-crime-numbers-definitions-and-more-hate-crime-conference-3-of-3/
  

New Glos library strategy

Poet Marcus Moore: part of the Save Libraries Day 'Flying Authors' tour

This week GCC announced their new library strategy - it is very good news that a public library service will now be retained in Hesters Way, Matson and Tuffley! Congrats indeed to campaigners - a significant victory that is worth celebrating. Without the campaign and the court case these libraries, serving the most deprived communities in Gloucestershire, would have closed completely last year. Of course there are still questions over how 'partnership' will work - this and other issues need to be worked through in the new consultation process.

It is, of course, very disappointing that the plans otherwise look very much - as Friends of Glos Libraries have pointed out - the same as before with some re-branding of the names of library tiers like Express becomes Local and Link becomes Partnership - seven communities are still set to lose their public library service completely and there has been no decision taken yet on the future of the mobiles. There is also lots of paperwork which looks like GCC are trying not to make the mistakes regarding equality issues like last time - campaigners are already looking at those papers. Work needs to be done to see how library closures will impact on vulnerable people and groups identified under equalities law......

GCC plans will in all likelihood get passed by cabinet tomorrow - they may get called in by opposition councillors in which case there will then be a consultation process. Click 'read more' below for the press release sent out by campaigners earlier this week while GCC plans are viewable at: http://www.gloucestershiregov.uk/index.cfm?articleid=107166

Fuel poverty talk in Stroud on 8th Dec

"Failing on Fuel Poverty? Challenges and Solutions" will be on Thursday December 8th at the Imperial Hotel (opposite Stroud Railway Station) from 7pm-9pm. The keynote speaker will be Dr Brenda Boardman MBE from Oxford University, one of the UK’s leading experts on fuel poverty and the author of several influential books and reports including ‘Fixing Fuel Poverty’ and ‘40% House’.

Take Greenpeace action here to end fuel poverty.

I was asked to be a speaker at the event to share the work I did chairing the inquiries at Stroud District Council and helping get the Energy Strategy for the Council launched - by the way it passed at Cabinet a couple of weeks ago. However I have a District Council Scrutiny meeting that evening so sadly will be unable to attend - however I applaud the organisers for putting this on and raising the issue locally.

The talk is part of the national Warm Homes Campaign and it is local fuel poverty charity Wood U Waste who are organising the public meeting to explore the current crisis and the new policies needed to assist millions of households.

Other speakers include Brian Oosthuysen (Glos County Council), Neil Carmichael (MP) and Kaye Welfare (SWEA). They will also be launching our Donate Your Fuel Allowance Appeal seeking to raise thousands of pounds to help four local organisations - see my previous blog here.

Meanwhile Caroline Lucas MP commented this week: "It is completely unacceptable that millions of people across the UK are still struggling to keep their homes warm and protect their families from the cold - with excess winter deaths reaching 25,000, increasing by 38% during the cold snap last December, and over 5,000 households in Brighton Pavilion alone stuck in fuel poverty. If the Government is serious about eradicating fuel poverty by 2016, it must radically improve housing standards, curb the power of the big energy companies to charge what they like, and put in place measures to help fuel-poor households. In the meantime, I urge people to contact the Home Heat Helpline on 0800 33 66 99 to get advice on staying warm this winter."

2 reports on inequality

I often raise the issue of inequality in this blog and the impact it has....well here are two New Economics Foundation reports just published that are worth a look:
10 Reasons to Care About Economic Inequality
Why the Rich Are Getting Richer

The report author, Faiza, writes: "Economic inequality in the UK is the highest in recorded history. In 1979 we were similar to the Netherlands and now we’re one of the most unequal countries in the developed world. From the riots in England to the global Occupy protest movement, the growing gap between the rich and poor is becoming harder to ignore. We need to win the argument that tackling inequality is necessary, desirable and possible – please read the reports and share them with your friends."

GRIN campaign

No this is not about smiling more. Some might remember my video of Gloucestershire Pride - see here - well it finished with a photo of me with Respect on my face (see left).....this was all part of a newish campaign GRIN or Global Respect in Education.

The campaign was started by a British teenage student in response to the large number of LGBTQ teen suicides both in the UK and US.  They have been going to various events to highlight the problems of bullying and are seeking ways to empower people. They want enough of us to demand equality and respect for all in education. Amongst their activities they are creating a photo protest that seeks to grab attention - I had my pic taken as part of the campaign - not the one above but I understand it will appear soon on Facebook - you can see their Facebook page here.

UPDATE: See photo at 80 here.

Fuel poverty: success at Cabinet

I have been chairing an inquiry into fuel poverty at the District Council - see here. The report I wrote was passed by Scrutiny and so this last Thursday the report went to Cabinet. I had the morning off work to attend the meeting and add any additional info necessary - well I am delighted the report was passed. Of course now I wish I had pushed for more! However it is a realistic next few steps that we must take if we are to take more action to tackle fuel poverty.

The link here covers the issues and what I have been seeking as chair of the inquiry. As noted it is deeply concerning that we face 15 to 16% of households in the district in fuel poverty and rising. Indeed last week The Times reported a million extra people face the prospect of fuel poverty within months with the gas price increases. While a representative of the Stroud District Older Persons forum told me this last week that they had visited Neil Carmichael to raise the issue of fuel poverty – particularly older people in rural areas and the cost of oil.

The inquiry Chris Huhne launched into fuel poverty earlier this year has now just closed to submissions and will report in the Autumn with a final report by January 2012. It cannot come too soon - as I have said before that I think it is shameful in an energy rich country that we see older and vulnerable people are skipping meals as Age UK have found, under-heating their homes, rationing their consumption of fuel – and increasing their exposure to ill-health, misery and depression. In 2007 60,000 excess deaths were attributed to cold in homes.

Last week a new study into the energy efficiency of Scottish housing. found that for every £1 spent on keeping homes warm and well insulated, the NHS could save 42 pence on health costs. A related report showed that bringing all homes to a ‘D’ rating in Scotland would support nearly 10,000 jobs and generate £613 million gross value added to the economy. 

It makes sense on so many fronts to tackle fuel poverty I find it hard to understand why there is not more leadership on this issue nationally.

Letter re disasterous NHS and education changes

Here is the letter to local press below that I sent at the weekend - but first the Gloucestershire public drop-ins re the NHS. Stroud's is on 22nd June 11-1 in the Sub Rooms.

Photo: View across to Whiteshill

Dear Madam,

It is no wonder there have been letters to the SNJ concerning the Coalition's plans for the NHS. We are told a funding crisis threatens the NHS if Andrew Lansley's 'reforms' don't go through. The truth is that there is a massive funding crisis facing the NHS whatever. This has been created by the impact of the government's cuts, money wasted on the ongoing privatisation of the NHS (including the PFI schemes) and a failure to 'green' the NHS with more emphasis on prevention and less on mega-hospitals.

Our NHS is value for money; it remains one of the least expensive and lower than both the EU and OECD average. The press talk of NHS negligence and misdiagnosis, yet a recent study shows that the NHS is the one of the safest healthcare systems in the world and a patient survey of eleven countries published earlier this year shows that on most criteria the NHS is in fact first class.

The Coalition plan a take over of the NHS by competing private companies responsive primarily to their shareholders. Forget the camouflage of localism and choice. People can't choose if services are contracted out, as contracts go on regardless. Even pro-market economist DeAnne Julius failed to find any decent evidence that contracting out actually works as a general proposition. Forget wasting billions on reorganisation, what the NHS needs is more money, less private sector and more on prevention.

Meanwhile while many of us focus on the shake-up of the NHS, Michael Gove has been pushing ahead with school reforms that are just as risky. It is the same sorry story with private providers set to take over services and further develop a two-tier system in which the poor get a bog-standard service while privileged families are offered a streamlined alternative.

The private sector has no "magic bullet" for education or the NHS. Both Lansley and Gove seem set on ripping apart our services for purely ideological reasons. Greens are amongst those who will be opposing their moves.

Cllr Philip Booth, Stroud District councillor for Randwick, Whiteshill and Ruscombe ward (Green Party)

PS The Green party sponsored Coffee House discussion on Friday 24th June is on the NHS at 7.30 at Star Anise cafe.

Gap Between Rich And Poor Named 8th Wonder Of The World

Here is news below taken directly from a report in The Onion which consistently can raise a smile - but this story is very sad truth....made worse by reading in The Guardian about 200 billionnaires meeting in Palm Springs to effectively purshase democracy - the Koch Brothers, two of the richest men in the world have always been aiming to curb regulations and fight politicians who cut into their profits. Their anti-worker, anti-democratic modus operandi is threatening the foundation of our democracy. Their target at this meeting included laws passed by Obama last year....anyway to the article plus after a comment at the end from Nick Shaxson (author of Treasure Islands which was talked about in Stroud a couple of weeks ago):

Photo: Click to enlarge

The World Heritage Committee officially recognized the Gap Between Rich and Poor as the "Eighth Wonder of the World," describing the global wealth divide as the "most colossal and enduring of mankind's creations."

"Of all the epic structures the human race has devised, none is more staggering or imposing than the Gap Between Rich and Poor," committee chairman Henri Jean-Baptiste said. "It is a tremendous, millennia-old expanse that fills us with both wonder and humility. And thanks to careful maintenance through the ages, this massive relic survives intact, instilling in each new generation a sense of awe," Jean- Baptiste added.

The vast chasm of wealth, which stretches across most of the inhabited world, attracts millions of stunned observers each year, many of whom have found its immensity too overwhelming even to contemplate. By far the largest man-made structure on Earth, it is readily visible from locations as far-flung as Eastern Europe, China, Africa, and Brazil, as well as all 50 U.S. states.

"The original Seven Wonders of the World pale in comparison to this," said World Heritage Committee member Edwin MacAlister, standing in front of a striking photograph of the Gap Between Rich and Poor taken from above Mexico City. "It is an astounding feat of human engineering that eclipses the Great Wall of China, the Pyramids of Giza, and perhaps even the Great Racial Divide."

According to anthropologists, untold millions of slaves and serfs toiled their whole lives to complete the gap. Records indicate the work likely began around 10,000 years ago, when the world's first landed elites convinced their subjects that construction of such a monument was the will of a divine authority, a belief still widely held today.

"When I stare out across its astounding breadth, I'm often moved to tears," said Johannesburg resident Grace Ngubane, 31, whose home is situated on one of the widest sections of the gap. "The scale is staggering—it makes you feel really, really small."

"Insignificant, even," she continued.

While numerous individuals have tried to cross the Gap Between Rich and Poor, evidence suggests that only a small fraction have ever succeeded and many have died in the attempt.

Its official recognition as the Eighth Wonder of the World marks the culmination of a dramatic turnaround from just 50 years ago, when popular movements called for the gap's closure. However, due to a small group of dedicated politicians and industry leaders, vigorous preservation efforts were begun around 1980 to restore—and greatly expand—the age-old structure.

"It's breathtaking," said Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein, a longtime champion and benefactor of the rift's conservation. "After all we've been through in recent years, there's no greater privilege than watching it grow bigger and bigger each day. There may be a few naysayers who worry that if it gets any wider, the whole thing will collapse upon itself and take millions of people down with it, but I for one am willing to take that chance."

Added Blankfein, "Besides, something tells me I'd probably make it out okay."

Nick Shaxton comments on the story: "Indeed. See some recent real stuff on inequality here and here. But there’s something else I’d like to note. The published numbers on inequality vastly underestimate the scale of the inequality problem. This is because so much of the wealth is held offshore – where it becomes impossible to identify who the real owner of an asset is. If you can’t identify the owner, then you can’t plug the asset (and its income stream, if there is one) into the inequality database. This is especially important when we get into the murky world of trusts, which create shame separateness between owners and assets. More on this soon."

New banking crisis on the way and new Green leaflet

Robert Peston, BBC presenter on everything to do with finance, actually used the words 'fractional reserve banking' on national television! Well that was the message I got in an email. It is so hard to get to grips with our banking system that I thought I must see this - especially after the inspiring and shocking talk this week on Tax Havens in Stroud.....infact it is a worrying piece that confiorms many fears that the banks are becoming too big to save...

Photo: Bank of England

Well that link in a moment and more on the coming crisis - but also have in this blog the text from our new local Green party leaflet on money. The BBC program is well worth watching - see it BBC Iplayer until Tuesday 25th January here.

"Of all the ways of organising banking, the worst is the one we have today" Mervyn King, Governor of the Bank of England

Fractional Reserve Banking?

So this fractional reserve banking is basically the system that the banks used to create £1.2 trillion of 'funny money' over the last ten years. It's the system that, according to the Bank of England, is so unstable that taxpayers have to prop it up with a subsidy worth £100bn a year. It has also buried ordinary people under a mountain of debt - and caused the crisis we're all paying for now. It's so poorly understood that in all the millions of words of coverage of the financial crisis, not more than about 5 mainstream journalists actually figured out the root cause.

The excellent group, 'Positive Money' writes: "Note the contributions from Toby Baxendale, chairman of the Cobden Centre. And ignore Paul Tucker's suggestion that we need fractional reserve banking to allow people to borrow for the long term - that's a naive misunderstanding for the second in command at the Bank of England.

Greens new leaflet: Money: What is going on?

The Government is making huge cuts that will damage our economy, but there is no attempt to address the cause of the crisis: the money and banking system.

· The governor of the Bank of England has said that the way our banks operate could not be worse[1];
· Money is actually made by banks ‘lending’ it into circulation – this process used to be backed by significant bank deposits, but this was weakened by de-regulation by Conservative and Labour Governments
· Making money by bank lending has led to an explosion of debt, so that all European countries have deficits;
· Using the creation of debt to drive the economy results in the treadmill of the endless need for growth, inequality and environmental damage.

We need to take the debt out of the system, by taking political control over our money system - creating money as investment rather than as debt.

There is an alternative!

The Alternative:

Public and co-operative banks

1. We should maintain our stake in the ‘nationalised’ banks and run these in the public interest
2. The public banks should be used to invest in things that benefit us all in the longer term like public transport infrastructure and renewable energy projects rather than short term consumer spending and projects that make risky short-term profits at the expense of people or the environment
3. Local community banks, which both borrowers and lenders understand and feel part-of, should enable people to save and borrow money from each other within a community
4. Speculative and risky investments should be separated from the ‘high street’ services that we need for our day-to-day banking

What you can do now:

5. Switch your bank account to a co-operative or mutual, e.g. the Nationwide or the Co-operative Bank;
6. Build up community resilience through using our local independent shops, the farmers market, Stroudco, joining the local community farm, Stroud Community Agriculture and our local re-use scheme stroudfreegle;
7. Invest your money in local community assets, e.g. through Stroud Common Wealth or Stroud Valleys Credit Union
8. Support our local currency: the Stroud Pound
9. Find out more about how the money system works: http://www.positivemoney.org.uk.

This crisis started with the money and banking system and will get worse unless there are significant structural changes to that system

For more information about the Green Party see: www.greenparty.org.uk or www.stroudgreenparty.org.uk For information about or to join the local Green Party contact John Marjoram, 8 Castle Street, Stroud. 01453-757874 [1] Speech on October 25th at The Economist’s Buttonwood gathering in New York.

The coming crisis

Well that was the leaflet - Positive Money also have a useful summary of where we are in terms of money - See here both the bad and good news. They start with the bad news - and it is bad - they say "there is no question that the economic situation is going to get worse - probably much worse. Other countries (especially Spain) will be asking for bailouts within the next 2-3 months. Spending cuts will kick in in the next few weeks - many local council employees have already been warned that there will be job losses after Christmas.....Unfortunately, even positive economic growth does not mean we're out of danger, since economic growth under the current system usually come hand in hand with a growing total level of debt. That increase in debt will lay the foundations for the next collapse. Very simply, there's no chance of a recovery without complete overhaul of the monetary system."

In terms of the good news Positive Money say that we do have a solution to all these problems. They've outlined how it works in plain English, and even in draft legislation (soon to be updated). As unappealing as is the threat of economic collapse may be our chance for reform? Are the economists at the FSA and Bank of England beginning to realise that the current fractional-reserve banking system needs to be scrapped entirely?

Positive Money write: "We've had this destructive, socially-harmful debt-based money system for centuries, and it's got us to where we are today. It redistributes money upwards to the richest people and has benefited a small cartel of banks massively, at the expense of the other 97% of us. It's holding us back, economically and socially, and right now it's the greatest barrier between us and a better quality of life. It's time to let it go and replace it with a money system that works in the interests of society as a whole, rather than just in the interests of the banks. In that sense, the approaching economic collapse is something we should welcome. The challenge is to get the authorities to realise there's a solution before the situation deteriorates beyond control."

Do I understand 'fractional reserve banking' now? No! But I have a better idea and can see the arguments for change.

One in three too cold in their home

I am currently chairing an inquiry at the District Council into Decent Homes standards - the issue is being looked at due to concerns that while aiming for Decent Homes (a national standard) we are missing our own corporate targets to cut CO2 and tenants wishes to tackle energy efficiency. Last week I had an afternoon of meetings and visiting Council houses - on Monday I had another meeting to discuss thsis further.

The Council are in fact doing lots re energy efficiency - still nothing like enough in my view but more than many. In the next couple of weeks I will be having more meetings on this issue at the District - so more of that in a while - but here a look more at the national situation...

Photo Stratford Park in the recent snow

Friends of the Earth have launched a new campaign highlighting that one in three people say they're too cold at home in this winter weather. We need a new law to stop landlords letting the coldest, health-hazard homes until they're improved.

Take action

Tell your MP here about what it is like living in a cold rented home past or present. And ask them to sign a parliamentary petition (EDM 653) backing a law to protect tenants. This should also be about landlords getting the financial support they need to make properties cheaper and easier to heat.

This is the EDM: "That this House is concerned that over half of private rented homes fail the Decent Homes standard and that a quarter of private tenants live in fuel poverty, that the proportion of private rented properties with the worst energy rating is twice that of the owner-occupied sector and that the private rented sector contains the highest proportion (65 per cent.) of hard to treat homes lacking cavity walls or mains gas; notes Government statements that additional measures beyond the GreenDeal will be needed to deliver all the necessary improvements to hard to treat homes; also notes that the Committee on Climate Change and the Fuel Poverty Advisory Group has called for mandatory energy efficiency standards for private rented properties; understands concerns that the requirements of the Housing Health and Safety Rating System are difficult for landlords to understand and costly and complex forcouncils to enforce; therefore believes that improved information, advice and financial incentives for tenants and landlords are needed; and calls on the Government to take the earliest legislative opportunity to give councils access to Energy Performance Certificate data and information about the rented properties in their area so that properties presenting the greatest health hazard, those with an energy efficiency rating of F or G, are given the highest priority for improvement, and to set a 2016 deadline after which such properties may not be let without improvement to a higher rating."

Sadly our government doesn't seem to understand this stuff.

Government exposes most vulnerable to big freeze this winter

Before Christmas the government announced that applications to the Warm Front scheme have been suspended until April 2011, due to lack of funds. The government scheme offers grants of between £3500 and £6000 to help low income households in England pay for energy efficiency measures, such as home insulation. The scheme was flawed but there are real concerns about cutting it without putting something in it's place. It also make sno sense not to tackle fuel poverty - figures from National Energy Action show that fuel poverty costs the National Health Service £1billion each year and leads to over 27,000 deaths annually.

"It is absolutely scandalous that the Government is abandoning those who live in fuel poverty. The number of households affected by fuel poverty rose to 4.5 million in 2008, around 1 in 6 of all UK households. This is a real slap in the face for people hoping to have their homes properly insulated as the cold winter months kick in." Green MP Caroline Lucas before Christmas

Pre-payment meters

An issue I have raised before is the higher fuel costs paid by customers with pre-payment meters - they basically pay more than direct debit customers despite typically being less well-off. Lobbying group Transact calculated a couple of years ago that pre-payment customers - often single parents, social housing tenants and disabled people - typically pay £215 more per year than direct debit customers. People on low incomes often prefer pre-payment meters to direct debit so they can manage their bills on a tight weekly budget without incurring overdraft charges unexpectedly.

It seems extraordinary that this has been allowed to continue. The good news is that the EU are pulling the plug on overcharging - see here.

Fuel Poverty figures

Half a million pensioners were thought to have spent Christmas in bed to keep warm, new figures have disclosed, as it emerged that more than a million are missing out on cold weather payments. See The Telegraph here. Meanwhile George Monbiot writing in The Guardian says:

Cold-Hearted

Posted December 27, 2010

The level of excess winter deaths in the UK is higher than Siberia’s. This is why.

By George Monbiot. Published in the Guardian 28th December 2010.

Were you to list the factors that distinguish civilisation from barbarism, this would come close to the top: that the elderly are not left to die of cold. By this measure, the United Kingdom is a cruel land. Although we usually have one of the smallest differences between winter and summer temperatures at these latitudes, we also have one of the highest levels of excess winter deaths. Roughly twice as many people, per capita, die here than in Scandinavia and other parts of northern Europe, though our winters are typically milder(1). Even Siberia has lower levels of excess winter deaths than we do(2). Between 25,000 and 30,000 people a year are hastened to the grave by the cold here(3) – this winter it could be much worse.

Why? Inequality. We have an economic elite untouched and unmoved by the ills afflicting other people. It survives all changes of government. Its need for profit outweighs other people’s need for survival. Here’s how our brutal system operates.

Fuel poverty is defined as having to spend 10% or more of your income on keeping your home at a decent temperature. Between 2003 and 2008 (the latest available figures) the number of households in fuel poverty here rose from 2 to 4.5 million(4). That’s not people; that’s households: this blight now afflicts 18% of the UK’s population. Yet, since 2000, over £25bn of our money has been spent on programmes ostensibly designed to prevent it(5). Admittedly, much of this spending doesn’t really have anything to do with fuel. The winter fuel payment is, in truth, a universal pension supplement which people can spend as they wish: it helps large numbers of the elderly to get by. But most of the other spending programmes are ill-conceived, unfair and unfocussed.

Even before the coalition took office, the government’s statutory advisers estimated that 7m households would be fuel-poor by 2016(6), which happens to be the date by which New Labour pledged to eliminate fuel poverty. As the incomes of the poor fall and the Tories deregulate still further, it could get even worse.

The main reason is that the privatised, liberalised utility companies have been allowed to get away with murder. In her excellent new book Fixing Fuel Poverty, Brenda Boardman shows that fuel poverty has risen so steeply in the UK because public control over the energy companies is so weak(7). In 2002 the regulator, Ofgem, decided that it would stop regulating consumer prices. The energy companies immediately increased their profit margins: 10-fold in one case(8). When world energy prices rise, the companies raise their tariffs, often far more steeply than the wholesale price justifies. When they fall, domestic prices often stay where they are.

The price rises are exacerbated by policies which penalise the poor. People who use pre-payment meters to buy gas and electricity (who are often the poorest) are stung for an extra £120 a year(9). Those who consume the most energy (generally the rich) are subsidised by everyone else: they pay a lower tariff beyond a certain level of use. It ought to be the other way round: the first units you consume should be the cheapest. Before the election, both the Tories and the Lib Dems demanded an inquiry into competition in the energy market. They’re not demanding it any more(10).

There should be a perfect synergy between climate change and social justice policies. As the Commons Energy and Climate Change Committee points out, “improving the energy efficiency of homes is the most effective way of tackling fuel poverty.”(11) But the government’s green policies are grossly unfair and regressive: everyone pays at an equal rate for reducing energy emissions, yet those who need the most help to green their homes and reduce their costs don’t get it. Policies such as the European emissions trading system, the carbon emissions reduction target and the feed-in tariff are, according to the government’s Climate Change Committee, likely to throw another 1.7m people into fuel poverty by 2022(12). This is an outrage.

The main scheme for improving the homes of the fuel poor, Warm Front, is so leaky and badly constructed that, if it were a house, it would be condemned and demolished. Only 25% of the money it spends relieves fuel poverty(13). There’s no requirement that the worst homes are treated, or that they are brought up to an acceptable level of energy efficiency. Boardman discovered that “the proportion of expenditure going to the fuel poor is less than they contribute”(14).

Now the scheme has been suspended. The government has launched a consultation on how it could work better when it resumes, but there will be much less money(15): even if it starts to work, it will address only a fraction of the escalating problem.

Nothing will be done to reduce fuel poverty until governments discipline one of the least regulated energy markets in the rich world - controlling profits and prices - and help those who need it most. Green policies must be funded by transferring money from richer consumers to poorer ones. It’s a scandal that none of this was addressed by the Labour government. It would be little short of miraculous if it were tackled by the Tories. But until something is done, the cold will keep killing, at levels which even the Siberians don’t have to endure.

See fully referenced article here.

More quotes

Some more quotes that inspire and made me think - for more click on the 'label' below.

Photo: Ruscombe tree earlier this year

"Each uneventful day that passes reinforces the steadily growing false sense of confidence that everything is alright. That I, we, my group, must be OK, because the way we did things today resulted in no adverse consequences."
Scott Snook, senior lecturer in the Organizational Behavior unit at Harvard Business School quoted by Laurie Taylor on 'Thinking Allowed' on Radio 4

"To be hopeful in bad times is not just foolishly romantic. It is based on the fact that human history is a history not only of cruelty, but also of compassion, sacrifice, courage, kindness. What we choose to emphasize in this complex history will determine our lives. If we see only the worst, it destroys our capacity to do something. If we remember those times and places (and there are so many) where people have behaved magnificently, this gives us the energy to act, and at least the possibility of sending this spinning top of a world in a different direction. And if we do act, in however small a way, we don't have to wait for some grand utopian future. The future is an infinite succession of presents, and to live now as we think human beings should live, in defiance of all that is bad around us, is itself a marvelous victory."
Howard Zinn, historian, and author

"Those who get are those who know and demand...rather than those in greatest need who do not know. Inequality occurs because no one gets out and finds those in greatest need."
Tudar Hart 1971

"Regulating by carbon trading is like fiddling as Rome burns. Governments and the UN should impose a carbon tax on corporations, both for production - wherever their facilities are located - and for transport, which the Kyoto Protocol does not account for directly. Incentives for renewable energy are also essential. We face a stark choice: we can destroy the conditions for human life on the planet by clinging to 'free-market' fundamentalism, or we can secure our future by bringing commerce within the laws of ecological sustainability and social justice ."
Vandana Shiva, leading author and activist in India, member of the Policy Advisory Board of the Organic Consumers Association

"Friendship, mysterious cement of the soul!
Sweet'ner of Life, and solder of Society!"
Robert Burns

Urgent need to reform money

Mary Mellor's talk "From Financial Crisis to Public Resource" on Thursday 2nd December at the Subscription Rooms was fascinating and disturbing. Mary Mellor, a Professor at Northumbria University and author of 'The Future of Money', took us through the history of money and showed how the the state is central to the stability of the money system, while the chaotic privately-owned banks reap the benefits without shouldering the risks.

Photos: from the evening - the complete slides from Mary's talk will be available soon

Some 60 people braved the cold to come to the talk - if you missed it I would strongly urge reading Mary's article in Red Pepper earlier this year:
www.redpepper.org.uk/The-future-of-money/

As Mary says if the people have to prop up the system when it fails, why should they not also have control over the supply of money in the first place?

I had a useful DVD 'Money as debt' which was a really good explanation for beginners - see more about that here. I think it is still available as a Youtube here.

It is simply unfair that a system so unstable as that of fractional reserve banking should be guaranteed by the public - the losses are socialised while the profits are privatised. Even Mervyn King has now called for an end to fractional banking - see reports on the excellent website Positive Money: www.positivemoney.org.uk/

I think one of the most shocking aspects is how the banks basically doubled the money supply between 2003 and 2009 - 30% of this was loans to the financial sector - basically creating money out of thin air for themselves - the whole system seems so corrupt and so in need of urgent reform if we are to avoid deeper crisis and evermore taken from the public. Mary is not hopeful about any reforms but talks about a radical rethink that could could release billions ££ for use by the public.

The process by which banks create money is so simple that the mind is repelled. Kenneth Galbraith

Stroud Pound this Christmas?

One small small part of the answer is the Stroud Pound. Do join up. Stroud Pound are wanting to encourage folk to aim to buy all Christmas presents with Stroud Pounds this year. Likely outlets include Silverthorn in Nelson Street, which has candles and incense, the Stroud Valleys Project Shop, with its wide selection of recycled and ethical products, including goodies from the Green Shop, and of course Kane's Records and the Stroud Bookshop. Tony's Butchers will have his usual selection of special meats and we have a range of drinks producers include Field Bar Wines, Five Valleys Cordials, and Day's Cottage juices, ciders and perrys.

Here is Molly Scott Cato, who chaired the evening, speaking: "People frequently say to us that they have no need of Stroud Pounds because they already use local shops. But this is missing the point of the local currency in two ways. First, if you spend Stroud Pounds that not only means that your spending is local, but it also puts a pressure into the system for that same money to be spent again - maybe many times - before it is switched back for sterling, which can be spent in chainstores as well. Secondly, when you spend Stroud Pounds 3% of the value goes to the local charity you chose when you joined up. So we are encouraging businesses to support local good causes through this 3%, which they pay when they eventually swap the money back."

Have a look on the list at www.stroudpound.org.uk. Happy Christmas Shopping!

More interesting links:

Molly's excellent blog at:
http://gaianeconomics.blogspot.com/

Wanted: millionaires for social cohesion:
www.equalitytrust.org.uk/node/455

'Enough is enough' is the single most complete collection of policy initiatives, tools, and reforms for an economy that makes enough its goal instead of more. See it at:
http://steadystate.org/enough-is-enough/

'The End of Growth' is a new book out that looks at why growth is ending and peak oil - See a good summary at:
http://richardheinberg.com/222-the-end-of-growth

Another cuts site:
http://falseeconomy.org.uk/

Argentinian response to economic crisis (OU film):
www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDKeQ4IACJ4&feature=related

Transition Network and Government
Some interesting videos:
http://appgopo.org.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=63

10,000 solar panels in Birmingham - see Guardian (although note there are some difficulties still to overcome):
www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/oct/03/birmingham-solar-panel-council-proposal

And finally for a closing smile.... or .......
www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOzR3UAyXao&feature=player_embedded

Parish and councillor powers removed by Tories

Some will remember that I have been part of the Task and Finish Group looking into changes of the Planning Delegation process. Well in a political vote last night even Tory councillors who had supported the scrutiny report we put forward only a month or so ago voted against it at the meeting! They only just managed it and I believe our democracy will be all the worse for it...

Photo: Randwick Woods

The key bone of contention was that many of us wanted to retain the Parish/Town Councils ability to send an item to the Development Control Committee - this has now been reduced to only a request to Chair of DCC to take it to that committee - taking that part of the process out of the open and into a private meeting. Below is some background and some of the points that I made at the meeting....it is rather late at night - I got there before 6pm and didn't get home until 11.40 after the meeting - and a long day at work so please excuse if not all this makes total sense!!

Here is some background....

Let me start with the District Council’s Annual General Meeting in May 2009. I will use a paper produced by the Cabinet member for some of this blog - but have added and altered it slightly to represent my viewpoint but I hope to also put her side fairly.

At that meeting district councillors were asked to consider changes to the Planning Scheme of Delegation – i.e. the council’s process for considering planning applications. It was a firey meeting where the Tories withdrew their proposed changes - see here. Members agreed to defer any decision for further consideration; and subsequently, the Performance Overview and Scrutiny Committee (POSC) was asked to carry out a review and report back to Council.

A “task and finish” group (T&FG) of members of the POSC were asked to investigate how planning performance could be improved, and make recommendations on both the officer and member side of the process. I was part of that group. The T&FG carried out a thorough review during the summer and autumn, reporting back to POSC in February 2010 - see here - and yes we had over 12 half day meetings looking at all this and interviewing various other specialists and Councils.

POSC completed their deliberations in early spring and fed-back a preliminary report to Cabinet for observations. At this point Cabinet, whilst welcoming the majority of the recommendations, felt that costings would be beneficial to its deliberations. I note that we had nbeen asked to finish our report early so that costings could be included but they did not get done - hence the deferral.

On receiving the figures, and mindful that the financial environment had moved on significantly since the original debate, Cabinet felt able to accept the bulk of the recommendations of POSC, but chose to offer an alternative view on the scheme of delegation element. The difference in opinion, which will be debated by Council, revolve around which applications go before the Development Control Committee (DCC)

What are the changes?

Currently applications can be sent to DCC for a variety of reasons; however most of these are “automatic”, for example 5 or more letters of objection, where regardless of how pertinent the issues raised were, the application would be put on the list. This is also true of applications where the parish and the officer have opposing views. The POSC recommendation was to remove the trigger for letters of objection and guillotine parish and town comments at 21 days from notification. While not entirely happy with these points we recognised the system needed to be improved. We also made a whole host of other recommendations to speed and we hope improve the process.

However while accepting most of our recommendations Cabinet preferred a route which got accepted last night where the Chair of DCC will consider what items go on the agenda of DCC. This removes the ability of a Parish/Town Council to automatically send an application to DCC. This now puts us in line with other Gloucestershire councils but in my view is not the right move as I will note below.

It should be noted that around 90% of all planning applications are currently resolved by officers, and of those that go to DCC (179 in 2009-10) 92% are determined in line with officers’ advice.

Here is what the Cabinet Member Cllr Barbara Tait writes: "In no way will this affect the way we deal with the comments from the town, parish or member of the public. We will continue to appreciate the contributions made by community representatives. As a member of DCC I am grateful for the local view on many of the applications that come before me, and as portfolio holder, I also know how much my officers value your input. The changes could be quite beneficial it that parish councils will no longer have to ensure that their comments accord with the local plan policies. I understand that this can be cumbersome and time consuming. Instead, what I would prefer is your open and honest approach to the proposal, unfettered by such restrictions. I will rely on my fellow councillors to bring the arguments together and voice these where appropriate."

I totally disagree that these changes could be beneficial - the only objections allowed to be considered are planning ones - not listing those will only hasten rejection of those comments in my view. How can that be an improvement?

Why make changes to the Scheme of Delegation?

This is what the Cabinet Member writes: "From the outset, the review of the Planning Scheme of Delegation set out to increase the speed and consistency of determining planning applications in order to: · increase customer satisfaction levels – a speedier service · support economic development – by removing unnecessary delays · reduce costs"

It is estimated that the POSC scheme of delegation will save £40,000 against the current scheme - ie more than a 40% saving - Cabinet suggest a further £30,000 a year could be saved by their changes. I am not sure I entirely agree with these estimates which are not in staff - with the £30,000 no staff posts are disappearing as a result, it will just mean the planners can do other work. I also wonder if not more investment in legal advice might help us win appeals - I learnt this evening we now only have 2 days of advice when we used to have 5 per week. Figures from the past year show that all applications which were refused by DCC against officer advice, which were subsequently appealed by the applicant, were then overturned by the inspector. However how would it have been with better legal advice?

Anyhow Ward members, and parish and town councils (via their ward members), can still request that an application is considered by DCC, but once again, these would be considered by the Chair of DCC and the Head of Planning in order to ensure that only applications of major importance or wider significance were referred. There is still at least a process for ward members to use to request that an application is considered at DCC. An amendment made to the papers means that Parish/Town Councils can also request. There is also a review after 12 months.

So to finish here are some quick notes of some of the points I made:
As one of those on this Task and Finish Group I welcome that many of the recommendations have been accepted. However I am disappointed with the Cabinet recommendations regarding the removal of the ward member and the Parish/Town Councils trigger for applications to go to DCC.

Firstly these changes are coming in without some of those most effected by the changes having been consulted properly. A questionnaire went to Parish Councils but it did not ask their specific opinion on this proposed change. Why no consultation when we have consulted so well on the Corse Strategy and plan to re e-planning issues?

Secondly I recognise that DCC has on occasions too many applications to do justice to them all. In the Task and Finish Group this was completely recognised and many of our recommendations specifically seek to tackle the problem - for example it was considered the first step should be to provide better training, better feedback and more support to Parish and Town Councils. We could for example make Parish and Town Councils more aware of the issues and also as recommended introduce a box whereby Councils could object to a planning application but also make clear whether they would like this objection to go to DCC or not. Indeed in the feedback from Parish and Town Councils there was overwhelming support for more training. This we considered would lead to more informed decisions by Parish and Town Councils and a better use of the trigger. It was considered by the Group that this could reduce the number of the applications going to DCC. We would then review in a year and see if other measures were necessary.

Thirdly I don't believe now is the time to make these changes. Eric Pickles plans further changes to planning and I would like to first see how Parish and Town Councils respond to the changes outlined in the Scrutiny report and take up the challenge of helping us improve our planning system.

Lastly some of the Parish and Town Councils have already expressed concerns at the possible loss of the ability to trigger applications going to DCC. I recognise local views will, as always, be taken into account but it is very different for an application to go to DCC in public as opposed to being heard by the Head of Planning and Chair of DCC. Eric Pickles wants localism which he defines as “allowing communities to shape their neighbourhoods and share in the benefits”. I consider if this move goes ahead it goes against the spirit of localism. It could also lead to less interest by local Councils in participating in the planning process. I will not be able to support the Cabinet recommendations.

Another Councillor quoted the Tory website which says under local government: "The Government believes that it is time for a fundamental shift of power from Westminster to people. We will promote decentralisation and democratic engagement, and we will end the era of top-down government by giving new powers to local councils, communities, neighbourhoods and individuals." Great stuff but this move doesn't fit with the changes to planning at all. Very disappointing but now the challenge is to make it work - and ensure that local voices are still heard. I do consider that this can still be done but do regret that openness provided by DCC with the automatic trigger.

Anyway several other items also discussed at Council but I have run out of steam!!

More on the cuts

My letter on the cuts is apparently in the Western Daily Press today - I have already received three emails thanking me for raising the issues - however if I'd waited the evidence of unfairness is mounting....

In every income group, from the richest to the poorest, parents with school age children will lose more than single people, childless couples and pensioners, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS). The IFS calculated that the average family with children will be losing £1,964 of its £29,242 net income a year by 2014-15, when the spending cuts and tax rises announced by this Government and the last have taken effect. That loss will be equal to a 6.7 per cent drop in income, the IFS said. By contrast, the average pensioner will lose 2.9 per cent, and childless adults will lose 2.7 per cent.

Nick Clegg calls all this 'distorted nonsense' - well it is true that the you can get stats to tell almost any story but we have here one of the most respected thinktanks in Government circles making this analysis. Since then many more are looking into the details.

Various campaign groups have also condemned the cuts. The Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) for example has declared the government's spending review "worryingly short-sighted and profoundly unfair."

Dr Faiza Shaheen, Researcher on Economic Inequality at the new economics foundation said: "The Coalition Government has repeatedly said that we should not saddle future generations with today’s debts. But with these drastic spending cuts there is a serious danger of creating false economies. Spending cuts which will disproportionately affect women and poorer families will inevitably harm their children and young people. Despite the promises that have been made, some of these cuts will entrench patterns of poverty and inequality, reducing social mobility and worsening health and social outcomes.”

Johann Hari: "A colder, crueller country - for no gain" - "....spending cuts are ideologically motivated, and have been proven not to work in relieving economic crises... PriceWaterhouseCooper – nobody's idea of a Trotskyite cell – says that a million people will now lose their jobs as a direct result....." See here.

Taking the Government to Court

Meanwhile Yvette Cooper and The Fawcett Society are going to court over the unfairness of the cuts on women. Ceri Goddard, Chief Executive of the Fawcett Society, said: "The cuts are so deep and will hit women so hard that they risk more than women’s financial security – they threaten hard fought progress we’ve made on women’s equality. The Chancellor’s plans undermine the status of women as equal partners with men in the world of work, home and society as a whole."

Green MP Caroline Lucas – one of the three women in the House of Commons representing independent parties – asked chancellor George Osborne in July whether his department undertook an equalities impact assessment of the budget, he fudged: "I shall let the honourable member have a reply as soon as possible." "A simple yes or no would have done," commented Lucas.

When I asked the Treasury in July whether it had carried out an equality impact assessment, a spokesman insisted that it had. Where was it published? On the website, said the Treasury. No, it isn't. A month later the Treasury sent a Freedom of Information Act response admitting there had been no Equality Impact Assessment, and adding: "It would not be possible to conduct an Equality Impact Assessment over this broad range of measures."

University plans will increase inequality

Next week I'm going with my godson to visit a university where he hopes to study - but times are looking set to get very hard for students. It will be interesting to see what sort of a U-turn the Liberal Democrats might do - as we all know most of them signed a pledge not to increase tuition fees before the May general election.

Vince Cable has gone out on a limb, arguing that they need to do something more progressive than a graduate tax. Yet how can that be possible with market-based fees? There can be nothing progressive about £7,000 fees. Many students voted Lib Dem knowing their pledge - they cannot and must not u-turn or how can anyone believe any promise made?

“The Browne review is simply a bid to shift the cost of education away from the state and onto the student. It will mean our public degrees will be among the most costly in the world. Many people will be priced out of going to university. A free market in tuition fees can only increase inequality. The Greens said the Browne review’s findings were “not appropriate for a country that values social mobility and inclusiveness.” Green MP Caroline Lucas (pictured above outside Sussex Uni)

"A market in course prices between universities would increasingly put pressure on students to make decisions based on cost rather than academic ability or ambition. Those already feeling the pinch will clearly be unwilling to take such a gamble and face being priced out of the universities that would opt to charge sky-high fees." Aaron Porter, president of the National Union of Students

"Graduates are currently leaving medical school with an estimated £37,000 worth of debt under the present £3,290 annual fee. There is the potential that some students could incur debts up to and beyond £100,0000 if fees are set at £10,000 or above by medical schools." British Medical Association

BNP not coming to Stroud: would a motion help?

The SNJ report that the BNP are not coming to Stroud as planned - however the Say No To The BNP protest meeting went ahead on Wednesday night.

Whatever we feel the BNP is a recognised political party and I do agree with Andy Reed's comments made earlier that: "Whenever the BNP has put up candidates locally, it has had no support whatsoever. However, history shows that censorship only plays into the hands of such groups. The best approach is to bring the BNP and their policies out into the open. I know many Stroud people feel strongly about the BNP and will relish this opportunity to expose and challenge its policies."

With that in mind I have been very supportive of the initial drafts of a motion that folk can put to local Councils. Below is the latest version that is being circulated by email - this seems to me a more constructive approach. Yes a motion is just words but the hope is that it could also lead to actions....

News .... News... News ...

Model Motion for Parish Councils, District Councils and the County Council -

Perhaps we should consider this as part of a theme of Standing Together and Providing Community Leadership.

First of all thanks to all who have commented on the Model Motion - Even though the immediate issue of the BNP has reduced the wider issues of combating racism and other threats to our communities still exists and I urge everyone to get involved.

We are anticipating (subject to a bit of red tape) that the First Council to consider adopting the Model Motion will be Cam Parish Council on Monday. Notice of Motion is being submitted to Stroud Town Council today and is expected to be debated at the next full Council Meeting on 26 October

We would urge all Parish and Town Councils and the District and County Council to consider adopting the model motion:

This Council is proud of Gloucestershire’s long tradition of welcoming and integrating new citizens regardless of race, colour, religion or gender. Recognising that this Council has a responsibility to challenge the underlying misunderstandings and misconceptions that allow racism to pollute our society we wish to promote Gloucestershire as a Discrimination Free Zone and call on all citizens to work together to create a society in which Equality, Human Rights, Justice and Inclusion are the core values of all.

Supporters Network
We have set up a Survey on Survey Monkey to enable people to show their support and contribute their ideas. This can be found at
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/QWN3BY2

Democratic Structure
At present the Network is being co-ordinated by one individual but we need to set up some form of Governance Structure to get the project going. If you are interested in helping please include your comments in the Supporters Network Survey

Meanwhile the Equality Act comes into force

The act consolidates all the separate discrimination acts however it has not been enacted in full. This does in my view rather make a nonsense of the Coalition's speeches about equality and a fairer Britain!

The Act does have some useful measures - it restricts the circumstances in which employers can ask job applicants questions about disability or health prior to offering them a position, making it more difficult for disabled people to be unfairly screened out. There are also new powers for employment tribunals. The Act will also stop employers using pay secrecy clauses to prevent employees discussing their own pay, which means men and women can compare pay. But the Act will not make employers reveal how much they pay men compared with women, as had been planned by the Labour government. See BBC report.

The Fawcett Society says partial implementation of Equality Act renders it toothless - see here. It is certainly disappointing when the Act was so close to going through and had already largely reached agreement under the previous Government.

Greens return from conference

The Eco-Renovation Open Homes weekend meant I missed not just Randwick Horticultural Show but also the Green Party conference in Birmingham this last weekend. Below are some links to give a flavour of the weekend....this morning I also talked to a couple of Greens at a Green councillors meeting - it was good to hear about the buzz at conference but also some comments critical of Greens who are concerned that now we have a leader there is a worry about the 'cult of personality.'

Of course there is a risk but there are mechanisms in place to ensure the chances of that are reduced. I voted against a leader - see here - but hey it's time to move on - social and environmental justice are what we are working for and Caroline is one of the most effective voices we've ever had - a voice that is increasingly heard.

You can start getting a flavour of conference by seeing Caroline's keynote (spread over 2 videos) - after 30 years we finally have a voice in Westminister - see what she has to say to Greens:
http://www.greenparty.org.uk/News/12-09-2010-video-caroline-conference.html
You can also read it here - and see here Adrian Ramsay's speech as Deputy Leader and watch it here.

See The Independent leading article on the conference here: "One thing that is notable by its omission from Ms Spelman's thinking, however, is a credible mechanism for mobilising resources. Caroline Lucas, the Green Party leader and sole MP, last week compared the Government's response to a call for volunteers for the Home Guard. "Dad's Army will not be enough to prevent climate change or deal with the consequences," she said. She is right. Adapting to climate change will require more than the mere tweaking of planning guidelines and polite requests to local councils. In the long term it will need green taxes on property in vulnerable areas to pay for upgrading flood defences, for example"

Stroud's Molly Scott Cato did a quick piece on Radio Glos on Friday morning about the Green Party - you can listen again up until the end of Thursday here. Molly's piece starts around 1.15.12 minutes into the programme. See also Molly's blog on her motion she put to conference.

Some of the issues covered include:

How we need to tackle the prison population - restorative justice is long overdue. See here.

An emergency motion, passed unanimously at Green Party autumn conference, strongly criticised the privatisation of the NHS. The motion called for a campaign to have those health providers which have already been privatised brought back into the NHS, and for the NHS to be promoted as a public service free of commercial interests - see here. As Caroline Lucas said: "The White Paper spells out just how far the Tories and Liberals will go with their destruction of our essential services. They are planning on full privatisation of NHS service across England, a move utterly opposed by us."

On the heels of French deportations of Roma that have hit international headlines in recent weeks, conference passed an emergency motion urging "all Green Party elected representatives in local, national and international governments to apply maximum pressure toward improving equality and access to services for Roma people and asserting their human rights"- see here. Provision of services for travellers is an issue I have already raised locally.

Greens pledged to campaign for a publicly-owned Royal Mail - see here.

Public and delegates view of conference on a video wall - see here.

Caroline's vote on Afghanistan here.