John,

Less than a week to go to polling day! A record 3337 Greens are standing as candidates on a platform of challenging the status quo and building fairer greener communities and we are confident of making big gains across the country. It’s been a brilliant campaign with Green leaders travelling thousands of miles to support hard working activists in key battlegrounds and a huge increase in news coverage for Green policies and campaigns. Scroll down to find out more and see how you can support the campaign. 🔽

On Radio 4’s Any Questions Adrian Ramsey spoke about the scandal of raw sewage being discharged into rivers and called for the water industry to be taken back into public ownership, highlighting billions had been lost to shareholders through an "experiment with a privatised monopoly". He also called for tuition fees to be scrapped.

Carla Denyer appeared on Question Time and told the audience she supported striking health workers: “I have been down to the picket lines with the nurses and junior doctors listening to their experiences, and so many of them were there not just for their own personal pay but because they were worried about the future of the NHS as a whole."

Caroline Lucas was interviewed on Times Radio about the Big One protest, which she addressed. “Having looked at the analysis of global scientists you do get the sense that we are in this vehicle careering towards the edge of a cliff. It’s not surprising that people are trying to get hold of the steering wheel and steer us away."

Natalie Bennett criticised Labour attack ads on Iain Dale on LBC stating that they magnified the lack of trust in politics. "I can promise you the Green party will never run adverts like this!" she said. "What we need is a party like the Green party that offers positive alternatives of policies that make people's lives better."

Co leaders Adrian Ramsay and Carla Denyer launched our local election campaign on 4 April calling on local councils to sign up to a Right Homes, Right Place, Right Price Charter to beat the housing crisis and ensure green spaces are protected. “Today speculators and developers are allowed to chase the biggest profits and ignore local needs. What we need is local councils supported to build quality, affordable housing in the right places where people live and work, with the right supporting infrastructure and local facilities, " Adrian Ramsey said. Speaking at the launch, Carla Denyer said Greens are gaining the trust of voters right across the country. “Why? Because they want something different from the status quo. They want people that are really listening, not taking their support for granted and going about business as usual.”

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Thursday 4th May is the most significant ever set of local elections for the Green Party in England writes Head of Elections Chris Williams.

We have 537 councillors going into this election with around half of these seats up for re-election – more than ever before. With our superb local campaign efforts, we could not only defend these seats but add 100 more.
Greens have seats on more than 160 local councils. We are aiming to break through on to many more from Worthing to North Tyneside and from Sefton to Sevenoaks.
The party is part of the ruling administration of 17 councils including Lancaster, Sheffield and Herefordshire. We are confident of being part of running many more so we can implement Green policy in more places.
One of the most exciting campaigns is Mid Suffolk where local Greens could take control of the council from the Tories. This would be the first Green majority control of a council in Europe.
For coverage of the results, follow @TheGreenParty and see our website next Friday. Use hashtag #GetGreensElected to follow all the news from our local party campaigners.

Join us 9 May 6pm on Zoom! London Assembly Member and Green Councillor - Sian Berry will host Aaron Bastani from Novara Media and Green Party's Head of Elections - Chris Williams, with more guests to be announced soon. Sign up to join this event and find out all about the green vote, green gains and breakthroughs we make in these local elections!

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Did you know you will need photo ID if voting in person on 4 May ? Following changes made by the Government, you will need to show a passport, driving licence or another form of acceptable ID at polling booths. The changes have been widely criticised for rigging the elections in favour of the Tories by locking millions of more marginalised voters out of the democratic process. Green peer Jenny Jones was part of a delegation earlier this month which handed in a petition signed by over 100,000 people to Downing street, calling for the disastrous changes to be scrapped. In the meantime don't forget your ID!

✏️ Write to your MP: Caroline Lucas has secured a debate in Parliament on "improving public access to nature", with cross-party support. This Backbench Business debate has provisionally been scheduled for Thursday 18th May. It is an important opportunity for MPs to make the case for the Government to be more ambitious in improving access to nature, which remains vastly unequal, with people from ethnic minorities and on low incomes being less likely to live near green space. Contact your local MP and encourage them to attend - and speak in - this debate

🌎Work for the Green Party:

Looking for a challenging new job? We are recruiting the following roles, details of which can be found on our website

Equity, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Manager. This is an opportunity to shape and influence the Green Party's approach to increasing diversity and help cultivate an inclusive culture. Applications close midday on Tuesday 16 May 2023.

Policy and Communications Manager. You will provide policy support to the Communications team for proactive external communications between now and the General Election. Applications close at midnight Monday 1 May 2023.

Finally, good luck to everyone who is standing in the elections on 4 May. We are looking forward to a record number of elected Greens and more Greens in power building fairer greener communities up and down the country.

In solidarity

The Green Party 💚