John,

We will win on 4th May and then we will get to work.

This is a critical year for us with hundreds of communities poised to elect Greens to represent them at every level of local government.

Here in Mid Suffolk, where we are launching our campaign, we are on track to make history and become the largest party on the council - an incredible feat and a credit to the fantastic councillors already working hard for the people that live here, and the candidates who will join them next month.

But, this shift is also a credit to local residents who have asked for something different. Sick of the status quo they have called for a fresh approach, for people who listen and act and get things done. It’s no more complex than that. That’s why Greens are winning in coastal communities, rural villages, city centres and market towns like this one.

And for the benefit of the people who live in all those places, we’re proud to announce one of our key solutions to a huge problem impacting millions - our Right Homes, Right Place, Right Price charter. This is a plan to beat the housing crisis and at the same time to protect the green spaces we have all come to value so much.

The Right Homes, Right Place, Right Price charter is about delivering warm, efficient homes. Instead of developers being the winners at every step, chasing massive profits and ignoring local concerns and needs, councils should be in control of housing, building quality, affordable homes in the right places with the right infrastructure, to make living there not just bearable but good!

Because we shouldn’t be building houses, we should be building homes, and ensuring they are part of communities, supported with facilities like GP surgeries, bus services, schools and leisure centres. We should be making sure that everyone lives within walking distance from protected green space, where children can play, dogs can be walked and life can be shared and enjoyed.

Co-leaders Adrian Ramsay and Carla Denyer with local activists at the campaign launch in mid-Suffolk.

All over the country there are people unable to buy a home, trapped in housing that’s unaffordable to rent and heat. We would bring in an immediate rent freeze and eviction ban to prevent people becoming homeless in the middle of the cost of living crisis.  And in the longer term, we would give councils the power to bring in rent controls in areas where the housing market is overheated. We would also put much stricter controls on the type of new homes being built, to include more council homes and more affordable housing for people buying and for renters.

At the Green Party we work hard, we believe in tangible action not empty concepts and we believe in fairness. Our Right Homes, Right Place, Right Price charter is just one example of how we put those values into practice.  Fair, green, practical solutions to the issues we all face in our communities.

That’s why up and down the country we’re gaining support and Greens are winning in all kinds of communities. Regardless of where people live or what they look like, they’ve seen what Greens in their communities are achieving and they want more. So in Bradford and Leeds, in Hertfordshire, in Exeter, in Darlington and South Tyneside - in all those places and countless more - we are on track for record success!

The last few years have seen unprecedented success for the Green Party and on the 4th of May we will continue that historic run. Then we will get to work.