The Green Party NI has launched their manifesto for the 2024 general election.
Their manifesto focuses on five key priorities that they say will contribute to a “Greener, Cleaner, Fairer society”.
Party leader Mal O’Hara‘s foreword in the manifesto says, “We are in the fight of our lives for the type of world we want to live in and for the future of the planet.”
“It looks likely that Labour will form the next Government, but we need a strong group of Green MPs to dare Labour to be braver.”
He says that the Executive parties have “failed to deliver” and that ministers should be “embarrassed by their dire environmental record.”
As we are doing with all the other parties in Northern Ireland, here are the key points we picked out.
Greener
The Greens say they “will continue to drive forward policies which demonstrate our commitment to environmental stewardship and animal welfare and will work to identify local initiatives that will create meaningful change.”
Their first mission is to “make it easier and cheaper to reduce energy consumption”.
They want sustainable energy infrastructure to be owned by the community, to “bring the benefits of renewable energy into communities, rather than lining the pockets of big energy companies.”
They will support the end of sales of new petrol and diesel vehicles and want to align road tax to the weight of the vehicle, whilst “encouraging the transition away from the user of motor vehicles where possible.” But they do say that car users should not “bear the brunt” of the changes.
With their Green colleagues at Westminster, they want to see 30% of land and waterways in the UK and Ireland “returned to nature, supporting farmers and landowners to increase areas for scrub, hedgerows and rough grazing orchards.”
The party says that they will commit to a 48% reduction in local greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, and support a just transition fund for farmers.
They have also emphasised the need for Lough Neagh to be brought into public ownership, and want “immediate enforcement to stop phosphorous going into the Lough.”
Also, they say they will ban the use of glue traps and shut down puppy farms using the introduction of Lucy’s Law.
Cleaner
One of their missions within the Cleaner section is to “speed up the roll-out of renewable energy – and make the right people pay for it”.
They say the current targets are “too far away” and that they will “continue to push for an urgent transition to a zero-carbon society by supporting the nationalism of energy”.
Another mission is to “fight for stronger legal protection of the environment, our water and the air we breathe”.
“We will support Greens in England, Scotland and Wales in introducing a Rights of Nature Act giving legal personhood to nature in the UK.”
The party wants to strengthen international agreements to ensure that the greatest polluters are held to account.
“Greens understand that in this global era, we must work with our neighbours and recognise the benefits brought by migration and international collaboration.”
They say they “support Greens across the UK and Europe to campaign for a reformed Europe that works for everyone”.
They commit to the establishment of an independent Environmental Protection Agency, to investigate local environmental violations such as the Moubuoy waste scandal, and to implement the Climate Act.
In terms of devolution, they want to see more powers devolved to local authorities.
Fairer
The Green Party wants to see a wealth tax introduced to those individuals with wealth over £3.4 million at 1% annually, and those with wealth over £1 billion at 2% annually.
For Parliamentary elections, they want to see Proportional Representation introduced instead of the current first-past-the-post system, and for all elections, they want the voting age to be lowered to 16.
They want to see public transport made more accessible and the introduction of alternative pathways other than higher-education.
On the health service, they say they will “advocate for increased, consistent access to primary care for all through increased funding for GP services and better of healthcare resources.”
“We will ensure social strategies are funded, providing the necessary resources for social services and community programs.”
You can read the Green Party’s manifesto in full below, or by clicking here.
