A blog by Green Party Councillor Andrew Cooper about Green Politics, action on Climate Change, Kirklees Council and our activity to improve the local and global environment (and also anything that I fancy talking about)
Promoted and published by A Cooper, 76 Brockholes Lane, Holmfirth HD9 7EB
Huddersfield Greens are marking 27 years of the volunteer buses they have been running over the Christmas Holidays since 1992. Newsome Councillors Andrew Cooper, Karen Allison, Sue Lee-Richards and Sue's husband Gideon will all be volunteering on the long running service on New Years Day
Councillor Andrew Cooper who is a volunteer driver said,
“I remember the first one we ran in 1992 which we ran as a protest against the removal of services over the holiday period. Since then some services have been resumed in some areas, including Newsome in recent years on Boxing Day”
“I really enjoy doing the bus service each year and it is now very much part of my holiday routine. At this time of year there can be limited public transport services, trains from Berry Brow are often cancelled and taxi journeys can be expensive so people who use the minibus we operate really do value it. We put timetables on bus stops and in local shops so people are aware of our schedule. The service is free to use but donations towards fuel costs are always welcome. Our thanks to Kirklees who provide the minibus while we provide drivers, stewards and fuel A copy of our timetable is below.”
The service provided are on New Year’s Day connects Berry Brow, Newsome into Town and on the Huddersfield Royal Infirmary.”
Polling Day is tomorrow and why are we here? Essentially it was Jeremy Corbyn's decision. Without the Labour Party's support we would not be having a General Election now.
As was correctly reported Corbyn had again and again called for a General Election and had been called 'frit' and in particular 'chicken' a number of times and when, in recent months, Boris Johnson offered him one he resisted. Now anyone who has watched the 'Back to the Future' Trilogy will know that Marty McFly's achilles heel was reacting poorly when been called 'chicken'. It usually didn't end well. for Marty. Obviously Corybyn didn't watch it. So in the run up to Corbyn's decision to back a General Election they had someone following him around in a chicken costume and constant jibing of a 'chicken' nature in Parliament. It was almost as if they wanted him to react and sadly he did. He fell into a very obvious trap
So what should you do if you are Jeremy Corbyn before you agree to a General Election?
"A clear, agreed and easy to understand position on Brexit that appeals to core supporters who were Leave voters?" - Check/Not Check?
"All that Anti Semitism issue addressed?" - Check/Not Check?
"Contact with all other non Tory parties to agree a common strategy for the Election Campaign?" - Check/not check?
It was all pretty much "Not check" wasn't it? So anyone with any political nous would say a big "No" to a General Election at this time. The problem was that Jezza was calling for a General Election at every opportunity over the last couple of years. Really the only way of addressing the Brexit Conundrum was by another referendum. It was through the 'magic' of a referendun that we created the Brexit turmoil, so only using the same 'magic' could you defeat it.
Corbyn who had made his hallmark his conviction politics based on strong principles had become equivocal on Brexit. His message was far too nuanced and certainly wasn't the simple, and yes far too simplistic, "Get Brexit Done" message that the Tories have successfully pedaled for the last few weeks.
What has irritated me during this campaign is the pressure Greens have been under by Labour Party activists not to stand in marginal seats. There has been no pretence that there would be any form of reciprocation from them. Not even a token gesture of standing aside in Caroline Lucas's seat of Brighton Pavillion. Their approach has shown contempt for the Green Party, our supporters and the validity of our politics. They have also made a gross assumption that non-Tory votes are their votes and, though they don't support Proportional Representation they believe we should deny people their Green First Preference on the assumption that Labour is their Second Preference. Though I respect a lot of individual Labour members I find this hugely arrogant and indicative of a wrongful sense of entitlement that has been with Labour for a very long time. As such I did all I could not to indulge them and to get as many Green Candidates to stand as possible. Others did indulge them and they had their justifications for their actions. Justifications I do not share.
So here we are, the dawn of battle. I can't help but think of King Theoden in 'The Two Towers' before the battle of Helms Deep when he faced almost certain defeat and he is supported despite his own doubts by his devoted uncritical subjects. Corbyn and Momentum? perhaps? In the end Theoden won but that was with help of others. Elves, a wizard and the occasional dwarf. Corbyn has no others to call upon. The Green Party's role in relation to Labour would only be as unquestioning subjects with no rights or will of our own. Simply the providers of a grudging endorsement to our supporters. Ironic for Corbyn I guess as someone who is undoubtedly opposed to the monarchy to have such an approach.
The best we can hope for is a hung parliament and I hope Greens have a significant influence in that if we are lucky enough for that to occur . If not we are in for 5 years of a Tory Government lead by someone who has, demonstrably, no respect for the truth. As far as I'm concerned Boris may as well be a different species as I, and so many others, have so little in common with him. He has surrounded himself with people who have made a huge catalogue of contemptible utterances that I and many others abhor. In many ways they should be easy to take apart for a competent principal opposition party but sadly not this one.
If Labour do lose they will blame a lack of resources, the mainstream media etc but ultimately they need to take a long hard look in the mirror as in reality they will have no one to blame but themselves
It was my last meeting of the Committee of the Regions in Brussels today. Not because of Brexit but because we are reaching the end of our mandate and I'll be unable to attend further meetings due to the General Election.
It has been 4 years and I've got to say I've enjoyed it. Are politicians supposed to admit they enjoy things? Well one of the things that I particularly like doing is getting to understand political institutions and seeing how they work and using them to get some positive change. So I understand that is not everybody's cup of tea but it is mine.
It was 4 years ago when I was offered a place on the EU Committee of the Regions by Councillor Marianne Overton, Leader of the Independent Group on the Local Government Association I was part of the 24 strong UK delegation giving a voice from the local level into EU policy making. As a representative of the European Alliance group I have participated in 4 United Nations COP Climate Talks, lead on 2 policy documents (opinions) and seen best practice on mainly environmental initiatives across the EU. By it's very existence it demonstrates the lie that we have no influence over EU policy.
It has been a part of my working life for the last 4 years and I've reported on my activity fairly regularly on my Blog. The last few years, for have been blighted by the Brexit vote in 2016 for me. Just as UK MEPs have continued to go to the European Parliament I have continued to go to the Committee of the Regions and provide my views from a Green and UK perspective on EU policy.
Today I made my last contribution. We heard from Jacob Werksman, Principal Adviser for
International Aspects of EU Climate Policy, European Commission, who is the EU's
chief climate negotiator to the UNFCCC COP25. He explained how he was working on something called the 'Climate Pact' a process by which National Governments would make agreements with local authorities on how they could work together on climate action. My suggestion was that the EU Committee of the Regions, as the body representing Local and Regional Authorities, should be involved in the design of the Climate Pacts. This seemed to go down well and I'm hopeful that we will get a better document as a result. Depending on the outcome of the UK General Election, UK Councils may or may not be involved in climate pacts with National Governments to address the climate emergency we face. So farewell talented employees of the EU Committee of the Regions who guided us through EU policy and helped me achieve some of my policy ambitions, farewell colleagues and now friends who I worked with and some who I'll continue to work with. Is it the end? Who knows what the next few weeks will bring.
The Green Party Candidate for Huddersfield, Councillor Andrew Cooper has called on politicians to leave Castle Hill alone.
"People in Huddersfield really value Castle Hill. Local people have an almost spiritual connection to it. When we come home from our holidays the sight of Castle Hill on the horizon tells us that we are near home. When we bring visitors to see the town it is one of the places we take them. Its history goes back to the Iron Age and anyone suggesting 'improvements' should tread with caution"
" It has not taken long for me to work out that suggestions that we might have a cable car going up Castle Hill is a non starter. It is not a theme park or a visitor attraction like Disneyland it is a place that people go to to look at the town they live in and the hills that surround us. I also oppose any suggestion that we should put a hotel on top of Castle Hill. I like many had a great deal of affection for the old Castle Hill Hotel and raised the alarm when the owners started to demolish it in contravention of their Planning Application. Sadly we can't recreate what they destroyed."
"What we do need on Castle Hill is a retractable bollard at the bottom of the road to shut it off to traffic at night and particularly around October/November when it becomes a magnet for setting off fireworks. It causes huge disturbance for local people and needs a significant clear up operation in the following days, usually by local volunteers. Kirklees Council has simply not enforced the Public Space Protection Order that banned fireworks been set off from the hill. Last year the whole side of the hill, that was tinder dry, went up in flames as a result. The Labour run Kirklees Council needs to get a grip and when it declares a Public Space Protection Order actually enforce it."
How will Kirklees develop a buccaneering approach to risk and opportunity?
Kirklees Council has recently had a Peer Challenge Review conducted by the Local Government Association. They came to look at the Council , see how it operates, interviewed staff, councillors and partner organisations to get a clear picture of Kirklees and make recommendations on how it could improve.
The report makes fascinating reading for a Council insider and there are some clear observations about the Council's strengths and weaknesses. One particular criticism made me ponder,
"The peer team identified a lack of risk appetite in the Council, which could constrain the Council's pace and ambition. A bolder approach to risk and opportunity is required throughout the organisation and existing governance processes should be strengthened to support this. Taking calculated risks will help the Council to move forward with the delivery of its long term ambitions".
This resonated strongly with me and my view of the Council at present. When senior figures in the Council are asked how we are responding to this criticism, the generally well received Huddersfield Blueprint is referred to as proof that the Council has vision, ambition and is willing to take risks. It's a reasonable response but it stands out as an example of ambition and risk taking in a what is otherwise a fairly small 'c' conservative Council.
On Friday I was chairing the Kirklees Corporate Scrutiny Panel and a reference came up to the Council's Corporate Risk Register. This is a list of threats to Kirklees, its priorities, its reputation. It assesses how serious the risks are and what action is being taken to address and reduce those risks. The aim is to demonstrate the Council is thinking about all the bad things that could happen and how to mitigate them through a Risk Management Plan. It occurred to me in the meeting that we don't take the same approach to opportunities and that perhaps we should. How do we provide the space and structure for risk takers in the Council so they can thrive? Those people in the the council who have a buccaneering spirit that challenges the risk averse natures of so many local authorities. So perhaps to help those people we need a Corporate Opportunities Register and an Opportunities Management Plan that helps build a buccaneering culture that just doesn't recognise and address risk but also embraces it
Huddersfield Greens have selected experienced Green Party Councillor
Andrew Cooper to contest the Huddersfield seat in the December General Election.
Andrew has been elected and re-elected to the Newsome Ward
of Kirklees six times andhas notched up
over 20 years service on the Council. He has taken up hundreds of local issues
and concerns in his years as a Councillor and was responsible for making the
Kirklees Warm Zone scheme free to all householders ensuring thousands of homes
in Huddersfield were warmer and easier to heat. He now has a role providing advice and assistance to over 300 Green Party Councillors around the country.
At the national level Andrew is
the Green Party’s Energy Spokesperson and has influenced the UN global climate
talks by getting more recognition for the importance of the work of Local and Regional
Authorities in addressing Climate Change.
On being selected Andrew said,
“Huddersfield is crying out for change. We need a fresh
start for our town that provides a voice that is independent of the old parties
that have failed us all for far too long. I’ve lived worked and represented
people in Huddersfield for many years. It’s a town I love and it would be a
huge honour to represent Huddersfield in Parliament, to be a voice that is
dealing with peoples everyday problems but also looking at ways to address the
climate crisis we all face.”
“I’m looking forward to the campaign. I want to see as many
people as I possibly can over the coming weeks and to show people that there is
a way we can aspire to a politics that is better than the one we have all endured
for so long.”
