Progressive Alliance misgivings? Emergency Motion for Green Party Conference as Lucas reiterates support for electoral pact

In an earlier posting LINK I wrote about some of the underlying issues that had emerged during the Green Party internal elections campaign. (Voting closed yesetrday) One of these was the 'Progressive Alliance' and misgivings about the way this strategy has emerged have now become the subject of an Emergency Motion to the party conference which begins on September 2nd.

The London Green Left blog has an article giving a range of views about the issue HERE

As with all emergency resolutions priority is decided by the number of signatories.

EMERGENCY RESOLUTION PROGRESSIVE ALLIANCES

The recent political climate, combined with the long-term struggle to achieve proportional representation, has highlighted the need for decisive, cross-party action to demand electoral reform and give the country the best chance of a representative, accountable government. However, ongoing issues with other parties have exposed and intensified hostilities in some areas, and therefore any political strategy proposed by the Green Party of England and Wales which resembles an alliance must be developed both in close consultation with members and local parties, and taking into account issues which would create barriers when putting such an alliance into practice.

It is felt by many that discussions around this so far have taken place without due transparency, and are tantamount to the leadership team and key elected representatives creating policy outside of the democratically mandated member-led process.

Conference instructs GPEx to assemble a working group to carry out a comprehensive, initial consultation with individual members, local parties, and member groups before the idea of a Progressive Alliance is developed any further; and that the responses are used to inform the terms of such an alliance should it become a realistic direction for the party’s future political strategy.

Conference notes: Once an arrangement is proposed, it must be supported by GPEx, and put to GPRC for agreement on behalf of the party, as per Section 11, clause (v) of the Constitution.

Green Party members who wish to support this motion should copy and paste this, signed with their name and local party, to soc@greenparty.org.uk

Meanwhile in an interview with the BBC today LINK Caroline Lucas reiterated her support for an electoral alliance but stressed that was her personal view and ultimately the party had to decide:

In a sign of the determination by the Greens' only MP to boost the party's presence in Parliament, Ms Lucas told the BBC she wants "all the options on the table" when it comes to the possibility of talking to other parties before the next general election.

She said:

It doesn't make sense for parties of the left to be constantly fighting each other and meanwhile the Conservatives come through and we've seen that time after time in the 2015 general election.

I think what we are looking at is those marginal constituencies where some kind of agreement between progressive parties might be able to make a difference.

Asked whether this meant she was prepared to see a Green candidate drop out of a constituency race so long as Labour did the same elsewhere, the MP for Brighton Pavilion said: "Personally I would".

Vote 'split'

Such a pact could be designed to prevent the "left" vote being split between Labour and the Greens in some constituencies, allowing Ms Lucas' party to target certain seats while offering Labour a clear run elsewhere without Green opposition.

She stressed it was ultimately for the party to decide on what was her personal view on the issue.

Fifty quid to spare? Come to dinner with Dawn and Sadiq

Brent Labour's love-in with Sadiq Khan continues. Tempted? Here is the menu and venue"

Click on image to enlarge

'Away with test driven dull - let's have a colourful primary curriculum' say parents

From Let Our Kids be Kids campaign

Please write to your MP in a brightly coloured envelope as part of our Primary Colours campaign.

Primary Education is creative, bright, varied and colourful... teachers inspire a love of learning through a joy filled curriculum.

High Stakes SATs testing threatens this with a dry, dulled down, black and white, test driven curriculum not wanted by children or by teachers.

MPs get hundreds of letters... let's make ours stand out and be sure they get the message that enough is enough... Let Our Kids Be Kids!

DOWNLOAD LETTER HERE: https://letthekidsbekids.files.wordpress.com/2016/08/letter-to-mps2-primary-colours.pdf

Welsh Harp Festival on Saturday at Neasden Recreation Ground

From Black Training and Enterprise Group

The Summer Festival  (Nooon-4pm) is being organised by a team of young people from the Welsh Harp ward in the London of Brent. It is a ‘social action project’ encouraged by three local Councillors and facilitated by BTEG. It will  have a range of activities including:

• Football tournament – for both boys and girls and different age groups
•  ‘Cake Off’ competition
• Treasure Hunt in conjunction with local bird watching organization
• Races – including egg and spoon, three legged, bean bad throwing etc. for children and parents
• Open Mic – chance for people to show-off their skills/singing
• Music in conjunction with BANG Radio
• Stalls including information about the Welsh Harp and boating,
• Make-up masterclasses
• Face painting, henna
• Yoga, pilates, gentle exercise
• Bouncy Castle

The festival is about supporting young people to develop team and leadership skills, event management and confidence, promoting the beauty of the Welsh Harp and promoting community cohesion. 

 

The Festival takes place in Neasden Recreation Ground 

 

 

 

Editor's comment: Watch out for  McDonald's marketing as a local franchise owner is funding the stage, balloons and face painting.

Ashford Green Party resolutions on the 'Progressive Alliance'

Earlier in August, with the Green Party leadership context getting underway, I published an article about some of the underlying issues LINK. These include the proposal for a 'progressive alliance' which forms part of the Lucas-Bartley platform.

Their election statement for co-leader proposes in their 'Comprehensive Plan to transform the Green Party':

CRACK OPEN THE POLITICAL SYSTEM by exploring a one-time alliance with other progressive parties at the next election in order to replace our failed electoral system with proportional representation. 

At a recent meeting Ashford Green Party discussed the progressive alliance and passed the following resolutions which will be of interest to Green Party members:

Enforcing the democratic process in regards to The Progressive Alliance


Ashford Green Party believes that any formal national electoral alliance between the Green Party of England and Wales (GPEW) and any other political party should be arrived at through the conventional internal democratic process by which any other policy is agreed.

Ashford Green Party is calling on the leadership and all other members of the party to immediately cease from claiming that the GPEW supports a progressive alliance until a policy is passed by conference or an internal referendum which gives all members a voice on the matter. 

Ashford Green Party is calling on the national GPEW to remain neutral on the issue of an electoral alliance in its use of resources and infrastructure, such as membership emails, website and social media accounts, unless and until a policy proposal is passed advocating that position. This is to ensure neither the supporters or those that oppose the policy proposal have an unfair advantage.

RESULTS – For 16, Against 3, Abstain 2


Opposing an electoral alliance with The Liberal Democrats

Ashford Green Party believes that the Liberal Democrat party has proven itself unfit for governance, having enthusiastically and unapologetically enabled the Conservative Party to deliver an austerity government which hurt the poorest and most vulnerable in Britain. This included the disgraceful cuts to the disabled which has seen thousands of people die. They are also guilty of destroying the trust of young people by going back on their promises over tuition fees.


Ashford Green Party believes this makes them a party whose values are incompatible with the Green Party of England and Wales and should not be considered for a national electoral alliance.

Ashford Green Party is calling on the Green Party of England and Wales not to enter a national electoral alliance with the Liberal Democrat party.

RESULTS – For 10, Against 8, Abstain 3

Opposing an electoral alliance with the Labour Party

Ashford Green Party believes that as long as the Labour Party is suffering a political identity crisis, it would be unwise to form an alliance with the Labour Party.

Ashford Green Party believes that Jeremy Corbyn is an ally to our cause. However, whilst the Labour Party is in its current state, with the majority of its MPs purposefully undermining Corbyn and pushing against our shared core values, Ashford Green Party also believes it would be unhelpful to form any alliance with the Labour Party.

Ashford Green Party does not accept the proposal of helping elect neoliberal Labour Party MPs who do not represent the sort of Labour Party that Jeremy Corbyn embodies, which a formal national alliance would result in.


Ashford Green Party is calling on the Green Party of England and Wales to not enter into a national electoral alliance with the Labour Party, until and unless there is a significant change to the ideals of the parliamentary Labour Party, which both unite the Labour Party and are more in accord with the Green Party’s values and policies.

RESULTS -  For 11, Against 6, Abstain 4

Voting for  Green Party leader, deputy leader/s and the executive closes at noon on Thursday.

Caroline Lucas: Corbyn's support for NHS Bill was not 'inept'

Caroline Lucas' letter to the Guardian

 I have no wish to intrude on the Labour leadership debates and I have no idea whether former shadow health minister Heidi Alexander is right in her critique of Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership style, but for her aides to pick out Corbyn’s support for my NHS reinstatement bill as evidence both of his “ineptitude” and of his shadow chancellor’s “undermining” her strikes me as both desperate and depressing (Shadow cabinet inept and shoddy, says MP, 20 August).

My private members’ bill, drawn up after extensive consultation with health experts and health service users, would have reversed the creeping marketisation of the NHS – under both New Labour and the Conservatives – and stripped away the costly market mechanisms that waste NHS money and lead to inefficiencies and the fragmentation of services.

Perhaps a more interesting question is why the rest of the Labour party didn’t join their SNP, Plaid and Lib Dem colleagues in giving it their backing too. With a few honourable exceptions, they chose to abstain instead. Yet this is precisely the kind of policy a successful Labour party would surely be expected to promote – as well as demonstrating a greater willingness to work alongside colleagues from other parties on those areas where there is common ground between us.

Overcoming party tribalism and finding practical ways of working together will be crucial to any hope of progressive policies finding a majority at the next election.

Caroline Lucas MP
Green, Brighton Pavilion

Kilburn, Corbyn and Khan

Some local Labour Party members complained to me last week that they were 'always the last to know' about Labour events in Brent - Wembley Matters often knows before them.

Brent Council's photo of Khan visit

It does seem that Sadiq Khan's PR visit to South Kilburn, to sing the praises of Brent Council's housing and regeneration programme, was kept under wraps - perhaps to avoid any embarrassing interventions by local residents (see Kilburn Times Letters page this week).  Jeremy Corbyn's visit to the Rauch City Church (the former Gaumont Cinema) in Kilburn High Road this evening was only a rumour until a few days ago.

It is perhaps fitting, given some of the more over the top declarations of support for JC, that tonight's event is being held in a place of worship.

Brent Council leader Muhammed Butt has always been close to Khan, at one time there was even a wild rumour that he might land a City Hall job, but he has not joined the Labour List LINK group of councillors backing Owen Smith.

Given their closeness he may have known about Khan's intention to come out in support of Owen Smith in today's Observer.

These are our local councillors who are supporting Smith:

The list of councillor supporters of Corbyn is rather harder to access as it is in no particular order but Cllrs Claudia Hector and Rita Conneely are on the list. A year ago Cllrs Tom Miller and Abdi Aden signed upto support Corbyn.

I am happy to update these lists if any councillor wants to be added.

Jamaican Olympic success began in Wembley - in 1948

Guest blog by Philip Grant

GREAT JAMAICAN OLYMPIANS - No 1: Arthur Wint
 

The headlines from the Olympics are full of the achievement of Usain Bolt, in winning three sprint gold medals for the third successive Games. But Bolt was only following the giant strides of one of his predecessors. For a “small island”, Jamaica has produced some fantastic athletes, but where did this Olympic success begin? The answer is: Wembley.

The first time that a team from Jamaica took part in the Olympics was at the London Games in 1948. The people of the island had raised the money by public subscription to send them, and most of their athletes reached England after a 24 day voyage on a banana boat. There was no specially-built athletes village for the competitors at these post-war “austerity Games”, and while the men were housed, along with some other Commonwealth teams, at Wembley County School in Stanley Avenue (now part of Alperton Community School), the women stayed as guests of local families. You can read more about this on the Brent Archives website  LINK

The Jamaican Olympic Team at Wembley County School, July 1949 [Courtesy of the 'Old Alpertonians']

The Jamaican team captain, Arthur Wint, was already in England, having just finished his first year as a medical student at St Bartholomew’s Hospital. Born into a middle-class family at Plowden, Manchester County, in 1920, his life had already been interesting. At 17 he was named Jamaica’s “Boy Athlete of the Year”, and in 1938 he won the 800m gold medal at the Pan American Games in Panama. The Second World War put an end to international competitions, and when the RAF started to recruit from the British colonies, he joined up with his brothers, Lloyd and Douglas, in 1942. Along with many other Jamaicans, they were trained in Canada. He gained his “wings” in 1944, and saw active service as a Spitfire pilot until 1947, when he left the RAF having won a scholarship to train as a doctor.

At Wembley Stadium, the Jamaicans showed the world what their athletes were capable of. Wint won silver in the 800m, then went head-to-head with his team-mate Herb McKenley (who had finished 4^th in the 200m) and several top Americans in the 400m final. McKenley was the favourite, having recently broken the world record, but the long-striding, 6’5”, Wint overtook him in the home straight to win Jamaica’s first Olympic gold medal. McKenley took the silver medal, and they were both hoping for gold in 4x400m relay. However, disaster struck when Wint pulled a muscle while trying to chase down the leading USA runner on the final lap. 

Arthur Wint taking gold ahead of Herb McKenley in the 400 metres final [Source Brent Archives - 1948 official Report]

Arthur Wint promised his disappointed relay team-mates that they would have a gold medal at the next Olympic Games. At Helsinki, in 1952, that promise was delivered. In the individual events Wint again won silver in the 800m, while McKenley took silver medals in both the 100m and 400m. As part of the Jamaican 4x400m relay team they then won gold, in a world record time of 3:03.9.

 

The 1952 Olympic 4x400m relay champions, Jamaica. L-R: Arthur Wint, George Rhodon, Herb McKenley and Les Laing

 

After qualifying as a doctor at Bart’s in 1953 (and running his final race, in an athletics meeting at Wembley Stadium in the same year), Wint went back to Jamaica in 1955. He worked as the only doctor and surgeon in Hanover Parish for many years, and in 1973 was awarded the Jamaican Order of Distinction for his service to charities, schools and business. He returned to England in 1974 for four years, as his country’s High Commissioner in London, before working as Senior Medical Officer at Linstead Hospital in Jamaica from 1978 to 1985. He died at Linstead in 1992.

Usain Bolt is a modern giant of athletics, but Arthur Wint, who was known as “the Gentle Giant”, set a high standard for Jamaica’s Olympians to follow. If Bolt can follow his glittering career on the track with a life of service to his country and people like that of his predecessor, he will rightly be remembered as a true Great.

Philip Grant.