Barry 'bottles it' on Fracking

Huddersfield Labour MP Barry Sheerman on Monday said he had voted for a moratorium on Fracking on Twitter on Monday when in fact he didn't vote at all on the moratorium amendment. I guess being charitable that Barry believed that the Labour Amendment on 'tougher regulation was what he meant by a moratorium. Unfortunately the pro fracking government and the Fracking industry also support Labour's amendment so hardly a moratorium at all really.

Press Release - Greens welcome report calling for a halt to Fracking

The Green Party today welcomed the Environmental Audit Committee report calling for a moratorium on Fracking in the UK. The Report said Fracking is incompatible with UK policy to reduce carbon emissions to address climate change. The report also raised significant concerns about the potential impact on the local environment such as the pollution of groundwater. The Greens have been the leading political party supporting grassroots movements opposing fracking in communities.

Cllr Andrew Cooper, Green Party Parliamentary Candidate for Huddersfield said

“Green Councillors were ahead of the curve when we successfully proposed a motion calling for no fracking within the Kirklees Council boundaries. What we need now is a clear response from all Westminster parties to the report. Currently only the Green Party among UK wide political parties opposes fracking in line with the views of this  Parliamentary Committee which is independent of Government”

BAGGED! Greens secure flytipping evidence during Newsome Clean Up!

Green Party Councillors with local people carried out a clean up of Barcroft Road and Bluebell Woods. Many bags of litter were collected along with old tyres and car seats.Former Green Party Councillor for Newsome, Nick Harvey spotted official letters addressed to a particular householder bagged up with old nappies and assorted household waste.

Councillor Andrew Cooper said,

" We carry out a number of volunteer clean ups throughout the year in Newsome with local residents. Every now and again we find some evidence of flytipping and we report it to the Enforcement Team at Kirklees and push for prosecution of offenders. Nick was sharp eyed and called us over when he spotted the evidence."

Nick Harvey was a Green Party Councillor in Newsome between 1996 and 2002 and now lives near Filey

Councillor Karen Allison who was also on the Newsome clean up said,

" It was good to catch up with Nick again and I think he enjoyed working again on his old stomping ground if just for a while on one of our clean ups."

Photographs of the flytipping evidence have been forwarded to Kirklees as evidence to be used in evidence towards a prosecution.

What is Labour for anymore?

This poster from the SNP seemed appropriate for this article

 There have been 2 important votes in the House of Commons over the last two weeks that have had less media attention than they deserve.

 The first was signing off £32 Billion of additional cuts to public expenditure proposed by the Coalition Government. Some people may be surprised to know that the vast majority of Labour Party MPs, including Huddersfield MP Barry Sheerman, followed the Conservative and Lib Dem MPs into the 'Aye' lobby to support these huge cuts to services. We have no idea where these cuts will fall and neither do the MPs who voted for them, but given what has already cut then services like Adult Social care must be under threat. What amazes me is that Labour MPs can simply fall in line with cuts that could adversely affect some of the most vulnerable people. Only 18 MPs voted against including the Green Party MP Caroline Lucas and SNP and Plaid Cymru MPs

The Second vote was on whether or not Government should support a £100 Billion replacement to the Trident  missile programme. The debate was called by Green, SNP and Plaid Cymru MPs and was an ideal opportunity to agree to stop wasting public money on a useless expensive relic of the Cold War and instead use that money to support local services and the NHS. Yet again the vast majority of Labour MPs, including Barry Sheerman, voted against and the motion was lost.

What is Labour for any more?  If Labour MPs can't stand up for public services or oppose nuclear weapons what makes them fundamentally any different from a Lib Dem or even a Tory MP. Over the next few months we will see a lot of sound and fury from Labour saying how terrible the Coalition Parties are, but in reality they are little different. They will rely on amnesia from the electorate of their reprehensible actions in government such as joining the disastrous and destabilising US war in Iraq and people desperately wanting an end to this right wing government. Surely we should have higher expectations of our politicians than this?

Kirklees Weekly Wind Up 14th January

Here I am talking with Lib Dem Cllr David Ridgway about the Huddersfield Tesco No Development, Jimmy Savile and Miss Universe!

PRESS RELEASE - Andrew Cooper selected as Green Party Candidate for Huddersfield

Councillor Andrew Cooper who has represented the Newsome Ward on Kirklees for the last 16 years has been selected as Green Party Candidate for Huddersfield in May’s General Election. Andrew has been re-elected 4 times in Newsome with significant majorities over the Labour Party.

Andrew was born in Barnsley, brought up in Huddersfield and has worked for York, Calderdale and Kirklees Councils. For the last 8 years he has worked in the private sector developing energy saving schemes to help householders insulate their homes, improve their heating and install solar panels. He is married with 2 children and lives in Brockholes near Holmfirth.

Andrew said,

“It is a privilege to be standing as a prospective MP in the town I grew up in. As a local Councillor I spend a lot of time trying to find ways to improve the Town and to fight for a better deal for local people. The time is right now for a credible MP for Huddersfield who is Independent of the almost identical establishment Westminster parties. The real alternative is a party like the Greens with a strong commitment to social justice and protection of our local and global environment not a right wing Mark 2 Conservative Party like UKIP.

 
The Green Party is a very progressive party which has a strong emphasis on protecting those people in the greatest need. It is the lack of a real social conscience in politics and politicians these days which really concerns me and why I feel the Green Party is right place for people who are concerned about addressing poverty and social justice.”

Andrew has a long track record of many achievements for the people of Huddersfield which include: 

•             Proposing the UK’s first universally free insulation scheme, Kirklees Warm Zone that saw tens of thousands of homes insulated across Huddersfield.

•             Leading the campaign to replace ‘Welcome to Kirklees’ with ‘Welcome to Huddersfield’ signs.

•             Initiating the 2000 house solar panel programme which will see Council Tenants in Kirklees benefit from solar electricity saving them up to 2 weeks rent worth of electricity savings. This will be at no cost to the Council Tax payer and not impact on Kirklees Council budgets.

•             Organising a free Christmas Bus Service in the Newsome Ward for the past 23 years

Green Councillors back School's Solar Bid

Newsome Ward Green Party Councillors backing Spring Grove's Solar bid

 Kirklees Green Party Councillors have backed a local Schools bid to put solar panels on the roof of their building.

Spring Grove Junior, Infant & Nursery School in Springwood have entered the Friends of the Earth 'Run on the Sun' Competition where schools from around the country are bidding to get solar panels installed to help reduce their energy bills and carbon emissions.

Councillor Andrew Cooper said,

"It is great that a Local School is in the running to win their own renewable energy source generating electricity from the sun. With lower capital costs for solar and the Feed In Tariff for renewable electricity there has never been a better time to install solar on homes, public buildings and schools. At a time of financial pressure investing in solar panels is one way to significantly reduce ongoing revenue costs."

Councillor Julie Stewart Turner also backed the Schools bid,

"Spring Grove is in the Newsome Ward and if their bid is successful they would be he third school in our patch that will have solar panels. It is really good that the pupils themselves have been involved in developing the bid to Friends of the Earth. Young people are increasingly well informed about climate change and the different ways of combating it. Solar panels are an important way of reducing carbon emissions from buildings and reducing the demand for energy from more polluting sources."

Councillor Karen Allison urged local people to back the schools bid to Freinds of the Earth online,

"People can register their support for Spring Grove Schools Solar bid through a link on the Greening Kirklees website on the article on the schools bid here

Bumper Year on Greens Christmas Bus Service

Inexpert gaffer tape work by Cllr Cooper on the Newsome Crossroads Bus Stop (Photo Newsome Grapevine)

Our 23rd year of operation was a good year for users of the Green Party Christmas Bus Service with over 70 people using the sevice from Flockton & Grange Moor to Huddersfield on Boxing Day and over 50 people using the Berry/Brow/Newsome Hudderssfield HRI service on New Years Day. Cllrs Derek Hardcastle, Karen Allison, Julie Stewart-Turner and Andrew Cooper all took a stint on the bus this year with help driving from stalwart Andy Storey and new driver David Gibson. Delivery of timetables on our Xmas leaflets got particularly treacherous following the snowfall on Boxing Day

Andy Storey and Cllr Karen Allison on the Newsome run

Delivering Timetables /Xmas leaflets on Edale Estate, Newsome

Cllr Karen Allison who didn't fall down much!