Dear John

Thank You!

2022 has been an undoubtedly tumultuous year. With 3 prime ministers, government in-fighting and mini-budget chaos, the Tories are in disarray.

But, throughout it all, the Greens have been steadfast in our promise to stand up for people and planet. We've been making gains all over England and Wales, with our movement growing and some fantastic motions being passed at Conference.

Whether you donated, voted, volunteered or shared our message, none of this would be possible without you, so thank you.

Watch our co-leaders' New Years message and enjoy some of our highlights of 2022

Elections

It was a fantastic result in the May elections for us, and we won 124 seats, bringing the number of Green Councillors across England and Wales to 558!

With 21 councils now Green and 15 with Greens as the main opposition party, it has become clear to all that Greens are not just winning, but growing and building momentum.

Green Councillors

🌿 In York, Denise Craghill and Andy D’Agorne have fought hard to realise a greener vision. Their persistence has resulted in award winning Zero Carbon affordable homes with reduced car dependency.

🌳 Herefordshire is now run by Greens together with independent councillors. Ellie Chowns has led work to reshape the local economy and to resist the business-as-usual agenda by making business panels more inclusive. Funding was diverted to make weekend buses free for a year.

🌱 South Oxfordshire (a Green/Lib-Dem run coalition council) launched a funding scheme to cover revenue costs for local groups and projects for community-led regeneration in one of its most deprived wards.

🌲 Cllr Daniel Laycock set up St Neots Town Council’s first Environment Committee on the Council to tackle the Climate and Ecology Crisis in the town, and persuaded the Council to support the Climate and Ecology Bill.

🍃  Bedford Council voted to end fossil fuel investment thanks to the motion proposed by Green Councillor Ben Foley

💚 Polly Gaskin in Chichester, successfully submitted a motion on Proportional Representation with the City Council voting unanimously in favour, calling for reform of the First Past the Post (FPTP) voting system.

🍀 In Sheffield Green Councillors have introduced a 10-point plan for Climate Action, got the go-ahead for a Clean Air Zone, and secured funding for investing in community renewable energy.

🌿 In Wales, Lauren James was elected as Newport's first ever Green Councillor after a fantastic local election campaign.

🏳️‍🌈 Green Councillor Ian Chandler was recently announced as Monmouthshire County Council's first LGBTQ+ champion.

Parliament

🌳 The Clean Air Bill passed its 3rd reading in the House of Lords and won strong cross-party support.

💚 Caroline Lucas secured a commitment from the PM at PMQ's to maintain the ban on fracking, after Liz Truss' administration sought to overturn it.

🌿 A whopping nineteen defeats for the government at Report stage on their cruel Nationality & Borders Bill.

There are so many more successes that have happened across the year, too many to name!

We are excited and determined as we go into 2023 to build on these successes. We can't wait to grow the Green movement together as we look ahead to the next General Election, and securing our next Green MPs.

As always, thank you for your support,

In solidarity,

Green Team