NEWS AND VIEWS FROM THE GREEN PARTY IN THE LONDON BOROUGH OF BRENT

5 Jul 2024

Brent General Election and By-Election Results

Warm thanks to everyone who voted Green at this Election

 

Dawn Butler (Brent East) and Barry Gardiner (Brent West) have been elected as Members of Parliament (MPs) after winning seats in yesterday's General Election.

The turnout for Brent East was 49.06% and the turnout for Brent West was 51.95%.”

Brent East

Dawn Butler, Labour Party, has been elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Brent East.

The results in order of votes for each candidate are:

  • Dawn Butler, Labour Party (19,370 votes ELECTED)
  • Jamila Robertson, Conservative Party (6,323 votes)
  • Nida Alfulaij, Green Party (3,729 votes)
  • Jonny Singh, Liberal Democrat (2,635 votes)
  • Zbigniew Kowalczyk, Reform UK (2,024 votes)
  • Aadil Shaikh, Independent (1,846 votes)
  • James Mutimer, Workers Party (1,052 votes)
  • Amin Moafi, Independent (654 votes)
  • Jenner Clarence Joseph Folwell, Independent (169 votes)

Brent West

Barry Gardiner, Labour Party, has been elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Brent West.

The results in order of votes for each candidate are:

  • Barry Strachan Gardiner, Labour Party (17,258 votes ELECTED)
  • Sushil Gangadhar Rapatwar, Conservative Party (13,465 votes)
  • Paul Lorber, Liberal Democrat (3,013 votes)
  • Baston Anthony De’Medici-Jaguar, Green Party (2,805 votes)
  • Nadia Klok, Workers Party (2,774 votes)
  • Ian Collier, Reform UK (2,061 votes)

Queen’s Park and Maida Vale constituency

Turnout: 38,618

Total votes cast: 51.11%

Surname First names Party Votes
Baxter

Helen June

Liberal Democrats
3,417
Carter - Begbie

Angela Michelle

Reform UK
2,106
Dharamsi

Abdulla Janmohamed

Independent
601
Gould

Georgia

Labour Party
20,126 (ELECTED)
Hersi

Samia

The Conservative Party
5,088
Lichtenstein

Vivien Aviva

Green Party
5,213
Menabde

Irakli

Workers Party
1,792

QUEENS PARK COUNCIL BY-ELECTION

Leslie Anne Smith, Labour Party (3,038 votes ELECTED)

Virginia Leslie Bonham Carter, Liberal Democrat  (1,462 votes)

Ricardo William Davies, Green Party (1,329 votes)

Emily Julia Sheffield,  Conservative Party (1,138 votes)



30 Jun 2024

Vivien Lichtenstein, Green Party candidate for Queen's Park and Maida Vale constituency

 

Following the boundary changes three Brent wards are in the new constituency of Queen's Park and Maida Vale. They are  Queens Park, Kilburn, and Harlesden and Kensal Green.

The Green Party candidate, Vivien Lichtenstein, writes:

 

Born in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, we moved to Manchester when I was six and to London when twelve. Maida Vale has been my home since 1978. My degrees are BA Econ Hons (University of Manchester) and MSc (London School of Economics). My professional background primarily revolves around financial management in both industry and the charity sector. I dedicated a significant portion of time to caring for my elderly parents who were Holocaust survivors, which profoundly shaped my values and volunteering/political activities.

Prior to joining the party and simultaneously, I worked on hunger-related issues, and campaigned, since 1982, for peace and human rights in Israel-Palestine with Jewish and joint Jewish-Palestinian groups, including Jewish-Arab Dialogue and Jews for Justice for Palestinians.

After joining in 1997, I played a pivotal role in establishing West Central London Green Party in time for the first London Assembly elections, being active until 2002 when I concentrated on Israeli-Palestinian issues until 2017. In my role as Chair of Jewish Greens, I have been spending quite some time recently – following the Hamas attacks on October 7th and the subsequent Israeli attacks on Gaza – on this and related issues.

My other political foci are a Green New Deal; Universal Basic Income which would help resolve poverty and homelessness, and improve mental health; and the appreciation for diversity in our communities.

Beyond politics, I volunteer at Crisis at Christmas, enjoy exercising and shopping on my tricycle, tending to my plants, and reading; and am staff to three cats.

24 Jun 2024

7 Jun 2024

Green Party offer real hope and change for the NHS

The Green Party launched their policy on the NHS yesterday, an issue important to hundreds of people in Brent faced with problems with getting GP appointments, long hospital waiting lists and finding an NHS dentist willing to take on them and their children.

 
To offer Real Hope and Real Change for the NHS, Greens would:

Invest £50 billion per year by 2030 into health and social care - more than any other
major party - and would use the money to:


o Dramatically reduce waiting lists;
o Offer everyone access to an NHS dentist;
o Guarantee urgent access to a GP and same day access for those in urgent need;
o Invest £5bn per year to boost NHS salaries and keep our wonderful nurses and
doctors in the UK;
o Invest £20 billion per year into adult social care to ensure dignity for those in
need of care and take pressure off the NHS;
o Restore public health budgets with a £1.5bn uplift in spending
 

 Invest £20bn in a capital investment to bring our crumbling hospitals and old equipment
up to standard.


We estimate that to meet these commitments, the NHS in England would require an additional
annual expenditure of £30bn a year by 2030 while adult social would require an additional £20
billion per year.


How will we fund this? By Taxing Wealth Fairly


 Our wealth tax will tax the wealth of individual taxpayers with assets above £10 million
at 1% and assets above £1bn at 2% annually.
 Our reform Capital Gains Tax will align the rates paid by taxpayers on income and
taxable gains. This would affect less than 2% of all income-tax payers.
 Align tax rates on investment income with the tax and NIC rates on employment
income.
 Remove the NI Upper Earnings Limit that restricts the amount of National Insurance
paid by high earners. Tax rates should not fall as income increases.
 Equate the rate of pension tax relief with the basic rate of income tax to help fund the
social care that will allow elderly and disabled people on low incomes to live in dignity.


We estimate that by the end of the next parliament these tax changes could add raise between
£50 and £70bn pounds per year in 2024 prices.


A Green Plan to reduce hospital waiting lists and restore pay


The long-term under funding of the NHS has left nearly 8 million of us on hospital waiting lists.
Greens would bring down hospital waiting lists by giving Hospital Trusts clear, long-term,
funding commitments, so that they can better plan to deliver better care for us all.


NHS staff have taken unprecedented strike action to raise the alarm about the crisis in our
health service. We will prioritise supporting NHS workers, including by providing an immediate
one-off budget increase to cover fair wage settlements. This will address staff shortages and
encourage our valuable health workers to stick with the NHS.


We will tackle the crisis in staff retention through pushing for an immediate and additional
increase to the budgets for NHS staff costs, to ensure salaries are fair and reflect the essential
skills and dedication of the NHS workforce. The Green Party will act quickly to tackle the crisis
in staff retention through an immediate and additional pay rise to that offered in 2023, closer to
the rate of inflation. We will meet the junior doctor’s call for pay restoration to reflect the need to
keep them within the NHS.


Elected Greens will support the junior doctors’ call for pay restoration. It’s foolish and
irresponsible to continue to invest hundreds of thousands of pounds in training and then pay
them so poorly. It cost taxpayers around £200,000 to put a doctor through medical school.
When these talented and highly trained people graduate, we are not going to keep hold of them
if we pay them £16 an hour.


We also need to improve the quality of hospital buildings and equipment. We would make a £20
bn capital investment over the life of Parliament for hospital and primary care buildings and
facilities.


Protect our NHS from Privatisation – keep our NHS public


Green MPs will support legislation to abolish wasteful competition within the NHS, re-establish
public bodies and public accountability, and restrict the role of commercial companies.
This blueprint is designed to reverse the damage caused by previous governments that have
pursued an agenda that the market could make the NHS better. By contrast, Greens will always
stand against the marketisation and privatisation of our precious health service and will choose
instead to protect our NHS and keep it in public hands.


We Own It claim that Private healthcare providers are making £1 billion from current NHS
outsourcing contracts.New research shows 94% of health service contracts are set to expire by
July 2029. There is no reason why the services provided under these outsourced contracts
cannot be brought back in house.


Social Care


There is a crisis in social care, with over 400,000 people awaiting care, reviews, payments or
assessments. There are 150,000 staff vacancies in the care sector. In England there are
estimated to be 4.7 million unpaid carers. Greens believe that health and care services go hand
in hand. We would choose to invest in both, as part of our commitment to a country where
everybody can look forward to compassion and dignity at any stage in their lives when they
need extra support.


To address the social care crisis elected Greens will push for


 Free personal care to ensure dignity for all those who need care
 Increased pay rates and a career structure for carers to rebuild the care workforce
 Investment of £20 billion per year in adult social care and an additional £3 for children
social care.
 

The Green Party believes free social care is fundamental to a functioning welfare state. Elected
Greens will push for the introduction in England and Wales of free personal care along the lines
successfully brought in by the Scottish Government. For those still living at home, access to free
personal care will enable earlier intervention and access to help to maintain independence and
wellbeing. For those living in residential settings, the personal care elements will be fully funded,
alongside a tapered approach to other costs based on the level of their income. For those
struggling to afford the accommodation element of residential care local authorities need to be
properly funded to provide the right level of financial support.


NHS Dentistry


The crisis in our dental service means that people are pulling out their own teeth while even
children can’t get access to and NHS dentists. Tooth decay remains top reason for child hospital
admissions.


To end the scandal of dental treatment deserts, Elected Greens will push for:


 An additional investment in NHS dentistry, reaching £3bn a year by 2030
 A new contract for NHS dentists that ensures everybody who needs an NHS dentist has
access to one.


Green Plan for increased investment in primary care and public health

 

We think it’s vital to invest in primary care: General Practitioners (GPs) are key to both
prevention and early diagnosis. Choosing to invest in primary care and public health will
improve everyone’s quality of life, while also reducing the demand on the rest of the NHS.
Greens will push for:


 Increasing the allocation of funding to primary medical care, with additional annual
spending reaching £1.5bn by 2030, targeted at areas of greatest need.
 Reducing administrative burden on GPs, giving them more time face to face with
patients. Steps could include allowing hospital doctors to make onward referrals without
needing to go back to a patient’s GP.
 A £2 billion capital investment in primary care over the next five years.
Mental health


Elected Greens will ensure that the rights of those struggling with their mental health are
respected and that a legal framework supports all people to live fulfilling lives. This will include
ensuring that everyone who needs it can access evidence-based mental health therapies within
28 days.


We will ensure that tailored and specific provision is readily available for the particular needs of
communities of colour, children and adolescents, older people and Lesbian, Gay Bisexual,
Trans, Intersex, Queer and Asexual (LGBTIQA+) communities.


Putting this investment into perspective


Under our plans, spending on the NHS would increase by 1% of GDP by 2030.
Day-to-day spending on the English NHS is currently around £180bn per year, which is about
6.5% of UK GDP. If the budgets for the devolved administrations are included, this rises to 8%
of GDP.


By 2029/30 we expect day-to-day spending on the NHS across the UK to rise to 8.9% of GDP
(from 8.0%) under current government plans, our costings add £30 bn to English HNS budget in 2029/30. This would increase the revenue budget for that year by about 12%. Including the devolved administrations, our plans would increase revenue spending on health in 2029/30 to 9.9%, an increase of 1 percentage point.


Note: On devolved nations, the headline figures here are for England and our costed manifesto
will include funding to cover the parallel increases in spending in Scotland, Wales and Northern
Ireland.

5 Jun 2024

UPDATE from Ricardo Davies, your Green Party candidate for Queen's Park

 


Ricardo Davies in listening mode while campaigning

Ricardo writes: 

We've met many residents across the ward in the past few weeks, and there were some clear concerns which were raised.

    👂Traffic congestion: Our streets are choked with cars, impacting air quality and our quality of life.

    👂Green space loss: We're worried about the disappearance of trees and vital green spaces.

     👂Housing concerns: The council needs a real plan for affordable housing and tackling rogue landlords.

    👂An accountable council: Residents deserve a council that hears their residents and acts in their interest.

On Thursday, you have a chance to make your voice heard. Vote Green Party vote Ricardo Davies

I will fight for cleaner air, pressuring the council to meet its targets for active travel, and invests in cycle and pedestrian infrastructure.

I will fight for our green spaces, working with local groups and experts to ensure we maximise green spaces for recreation and for clean air.
  
I will ensure the council holds rogue landlords accountable within our ward and across the borough. The rental sector is rife with poor housing conditions, and landlords who seem to think laws do not apply to them. I will ensure the council uses the full range of their enforcement abilities to ensure better conditions for renters.
 
I will pressure the council to deliver genuinely affordable housing. Too many people are being priced out of the ward and the wider borough. At the moment the council's plans are to tell people to deal with it and find somewhere cheaper. We need to ensure that there is greater focus on social homes and regaining housing stock lost to right to buy.

 
Together, we can build a fairer, greener, better Brent
 - vote Green on Thursday.


Voting will be on July 4th alongside General Election polling.


Get the Green Party on the ballot for Brent East and Brent West. Support our crowdfunder

 

Brent is virtually a one party state, and the Labour candidates for the new parliamentary seats of Brent East and Brent West go into the general election on 4 July with huge notional majorities.  We have already seen at the national level the arrogant behaviour of the two big parties when they feel unchallenged.  

Now we need to fundraise £1,000 by Monday 9 June to fund the deposits to get our Green Party candidates Nida al-Fulaij and Baston De’Medici Jaguar on the ballot paper in Brent East and Brent West respectively.  

Help us make sure that the conceit of the two big parties can be challenged by the ordinary citizen and voter at General Election 2024.  

The Green Party has a very positive policy platform of Real Hope and Real Change for a fairer, greener country: fairer, greener homes, schools, childcare, transport and water.  We take the climate emergency seriously and will defend nature and wildlife.  Unlike Labour, we are committed to reforming the voting system to deliver proportional representation.  And, unlike Labour, we will defend our NHS, supporting staff and investing in facilities. 

Every vote cast for the Green party counts towards the "Short money" provided to support parties, so that every vote cast for the Greens in Brent will help to support what we hope will be a new group of Green MPs in the House of Commons in July 2024.  

But Brent voters will not be able to help new Green MPs in this way, if the Green Party is not on the ballot paper on 4 July.  Brent Green Party has no big corporate or oligarch donors, and we depend entirely on people like you. 

P.S. Because we're a political party 

We're required to run electoral register checks from people making donations above £500, and if you donate over £1,500 during a year, we are required to let the Electoral Commission know, who will make this available on their website. All donations go to general Green Party funds. 

Promoted by Martin Francis and Sebastien Marchadour on behalf of Baston de'Medici Jaguar and Nida al-Fulaij, Brent Green Party, 23 Saltcroft Close, Wembley, Middlesex HA9 9JJ. 

Donate here: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/get-the-green-party-on-the-ballot-paper-in-brent

5 May 2024

We are pleased with the GLA results but need more local people to join the Green Party as we prepare for the General Election. You can make a difference with the Greens!

Nida Al-Fulaij, Green Party Candidate for the Brent and Harrow GLA Constituency said last night:

It's clear that the Green Party had become a serious contender, taking more votes than the Lib Dems. We're delighted to see voters confidence in us. These results bode well for us in the General Election.

Martin Francis. the Green Party Agent for the constituency, said:

We are pleased with the result but could have done even better with more actvists on the ground. This is a good time for people who are dissatisfied with the three main parties and largely agree with Green Party policies to join us and help create the change that we so badly need.





Source: London Elects


1 May 2024

Use all 3 votes to Vote Green tomorrow

 


Don't let other parties scare you into voting for them - Vote Green in all three ballots tomorrow

 

18 Apr 2024

Green Mayor candidate Zoe Garbett on how she would change London if elected

 Zoe Garbett, Green Party London Mayor candidiate, was asked by BBC London how she would change London if elected

 

17 Apr 2024

Brent Green Party backs Save Byron Court Campaign

 

Martin Francis spoke briefly at Monday's demonstration outside Byron Court Primary School to back the campaign to save the school from  being forced to become an academy.

Government policy is that all schools should eventually become party of a MAT (Multi-Academy Trust) and are assisted in this policy by a law requiring forced academisation of local authority schools if they are judged Inadequate by Ofsted.

This is what has happened to Byron Court but campaigners argue that there were particular circumstances that led to the Inadequate judgement that are now being addressed by a Rapid Improvment Group (RIG) that involves the Brent School Improvement Team. They want the school to be given a chance to make the necessary changes and improvements and then be reinspected to demonstrate that progress has been made.

Parents are very clear that they want to remain a community school and not part of the Harris Federation of schools founded by a carpet boss with a CEO on half a million pounds a year. In a Federation local democratic oversight would be lost.

Martin told campaigners that the Green Party had long opposed academies as representing a democratic deficit and a form of privatisation. Greens also want to abolish Ofsted which has become an instrument of government policy and with its summary one word judgements and stressful inspection regime that contributes to destabilisation of schools. Exams of different types now dominate primary schools making pupils some of the most examined in the world - early years asseement, phonic tests, multiplcation tests and SATs at aged 7 and 11. The tests are 'high stakes' because they determine much of curriculum time and narrow the curriculum in many schools pushing out more creative subjecrs such as drama and music.

Green Party policy would abolish SAT tests entirely and establish an Entitlement Curriculum so that all pupils would have a broad and creative curriculm - education for life, not test scores. 

SAT scores are used by Ofsted, even before they visit the school, to establish an initial view of the school and so play a part in the inspection process, leading to schools feeling they have no choice but to concentrate on teaching for the tests, often against their professional judgement of what pupils really need. Behind this is the fear of 'failing' an Ofsted inspection leading to an Inadequate rating and forced academisation. 

So bringing all schools back under local authority oversight, abolition and replacement of Ofsted by a more collegiate system, abolition of SATs to allow for the creative curriculum that children will thrive on are all part of a distinctive new policy for education.  Schools will establish their own assessment systems aimed at improving individual pupils' learning rather than providing a data set.


15 Apr 2024

Green Party expresses 'deep concern' at increased UK involvement as potential Middle East war looms

Statement from the Green Party of England and Wales

Following news of the Iranian attack on Israel and the involvement of UK aircraft in Israel’s defence, Green Party co-leader, Carla Denyer, has urged the UK not to be dragged into a Middle East war. She said: 

The Green Party condemns Iran’s attacks against Israel, which were targeted on civilian as well as military targets.  This represents a concerning escalation of the current conflict in the Middle East. We call on all parties now to find ways to de-escalate this conflict, which risks spreading across the region. 

We are concerned by the use of British aircraft in the night’s events.  We question why Britain should be involved in this confrontation, where there is a risk that we could become embroiled in a regional war.  The record of Afghanistan and Iraq suggests that involvement in such conflict brings great risks, especially when the military and strategic objectives are unclear.

Denyer also questioned at what level the decision to engage UK defence forces was made: 

I am deeply concerned about how this decision to deepen our involvement was made and in what further action the government proposes to involve UK armed forces. Britain’s military involvement must be scrutinised and debated by parliament. We should not allow ourselves to be dragged into a Middle East war. 

Last night's violence demonstrates again that there must be resolution to the interconnected conflicts of the Middle East, including in Gaza where a ceasefire remains urgent. We are at a moment of grave peril and it is incumbent on all countries, including the UK, to find ways to reduce rather than contribute to conflict.