Find out about Green Party candidates for leader and deputy

With nominations now closed we can look forward to an interesting election campaign for Leader and Deputy Leader of the Green Party.  It is a strong list of candidates and I hope we will have  wide-ranging debate about the party's political direction and its strategy for increasing the party's membership and activist base.

All the candidates have set up websites which you can find below:

Candidates for Leader of the Green Party (Alphabetical order)

Pippa Bartolotti

http://pippabartolotti.com/

Natalie Bennett

http://www.natalie4leader.org/

Peter Cranie

http://petercranie.org.uk/

Romayne Phoenix

http://www.romayneandwillforgreenleadership.org.uk/

Candidates for Deputy Leader of the Green Party (Alphabetical order)

Caroline Allen

http://carolinefordeputy.org/

Will Duckworth

http://www.romayneandwillforgreenleadership.org.uk/

Richard Mallender

http://www.richardfordeputy.org/

Alexandra Phillips

http://www.alexfordeputy.org.uk/

Election Timetable

·  late July/early August - ballot papers issued with Green World

·  31 August 2012 - voting closes

·  11am, Monday 3 September 2012 - declaration of results

Wembley Consultative Forum on July 4th

The next Wembley Area Consultative Forum will be held on Wednesday 4th July at Patidar House, London Road, off Wembley High Road. The meeting starts at 7pm. Get there a little earlier to fill in a form if you wish to speak at a Soapbox.

Agenda

• Parking Charges - an update
• Tackling illegal waste dumping
• Shaping a Healthier Future
• Localisation of Council Tax Benefit
• Wembley Area Action Plan
• Draft Cemeteries Strategy

We are being denied 'rightful access' to funding for day-to-day living - Disabled People Against Cuts

Report from Kate Belgrave.com

I Went down to the Royal Courts of Justice this morning, where an application had been made by members of the Mental Health Resistance Network for permission for a judicial review of the work capability assessment process. A judge was deciding whether or not people with mental health issues should be able to apply for a judicial review of the WCA process. 

Adam Lotun, press spokesperson for Disabled People Against The Cuts, said that Employment and Support Allowance work capability assessments had developed “into a vehicle that is being used to deny people [with disabilities] their rightful access to funding and resources to assist them in their day-to-day living.” 

He said that the other reason for seeking the review was to stop the same damaging process being used to assess people on disability living allowance as DLA is phased out and replaced with the personal independence payment – “we want to stop the killing of the disability living allowance.” 

“These (benefits) were brought in to ensure that people of all different levels would be able to get access to funding, or resources, to enable them to cope and exist with the rest of society. Well, now that’s being taken away from us.”

 Claimants argue that the work capability assessment process discriminates against people with mental health issues.

 Result from the end of the day: Adam Lotun texted to say that: “The judge will give a decision early next week. In closing remarks, the judge said that this is something that involves hundreds and thousands of people,” and that there was concern that people would ultimately fill the court system with individual claims.

Campaign for Barclays to lose its banking licence launched

Following yesterday's revelations an e-petition has been launched on the government website asking that Barclay's banking licence be withdrawn.

The petition reads:

Within a capitalist economy banks perform a vital function in facilitating the production and exchange of goods and services. In return for fulfilling this role responsibly they are allowed to hold a banking licences, which brings them great benefits in terms of the ability to create money through making loans. The systematic manipulation of the LIBOR value to serve its business interests makes clear that Barclays is not a fit company to hold a banking licence. We call upon the government to withdraw Barclays banking licence.

The petition can be found HERE