I'm not happy about adding credibility to a rotten system but the Green Party made a democratic decision on this:
Today's announcement from the Green Party
The
Green Party today accepted the nomination of
London Assembly
Member, Jenny Jones to the second chamber in
the Palace of Westminster.
Ms Jones was chosen as the Green Party
nomination by a ballot of all members of
the Green Party of England and Wales.
She
has
been a London Assembly Member for 13 years,
which has included being Deputy
Mayor of London, and prior to that was Chair
of the National Green Party
Executive.
Ms
Jones said:
"It is an honour and a
privilege to be chosen as the
Green Party representative in the Second
Chamber. My holding the Metropolitan
Police to account for over a decade has shown
me that issues around policing
are a constant concern UK wide and there's a
clear need for strong voices
protecting civil liberties and the right to
protest. I am looking forward to a
new battlefield for green ideas and policies
and I shall do my best to fulfill
the trust and expectation that my party has
shown in me."
The
appointment of Ms Jones to the Second Chamber
restores the Green Party back to
its previous level of representation prior to
2008. Ms Jones will be using the
post to support the many worthy changes to
legislation put to the Second Chamber
by Green MP Caroline Lucas.
Natalie Bennett, Green Party
leader, said: "I'm
delighted that the Green Party has provided
the second chamber of the British
parliament with its first elected
representative*.
"We can only hope this can act
as a spur towards
wider reform of this house, for which reform
has been promised for more than a
century.
"Reform was included in the
manifestos of the three
largest political parties in Britain in 2010,
and it isn't too late for action
within the term of this parliament."
Natalie added: "Jenny will be
an excellent addition
to the second chamber, and one small step
towards political balance there. Of
course a full-elected chamber, on the basis of
a proportional vote, would
produce a body entirely reflecting the
democratic wishes of the British
people."
* Jenny was selected as the
Green Party's top candidate
for the House in an open ballot of all Green
Party members.
"The appointment of Ms Jones to the Second Chamber restores the Green Party back to its previous level of representation prior to 2008. " (GP press release)
ReplyDeleteIs this true? Wasn't the previous Green peer a hereditary peer who chose chose to sit as a Green? therefore he was never an elected representative of any one.
A senior London Green Party source writs:
ReplyDeleteTim Beaumont was not a hereditary. He had been appointed by the Lib Dems. He was then their president.
Later he crossed the floor and joined the Greens.