Cleo Sharp, Brighton and East Sussex Socialist Party
The Green Party has recently won hundreds more council seats and taken control of 6 councils, they take part in the leadership of more, with many of its supporters anticipating change.
We visited the South East Young Greens conference in Guildford on Saturday 23 May to discuss with Green Party members.
The event included a panel of three councillors: Jimi and Katie from Worthing and Sam from Southampton. Questions were asked from the floor but largely focused on successes they’d had and priorities in their areas. Sam talked about affordable council housing in Southampton, Katie mentioned fostering pride in communities in Worthing to combat disillusionment, and Jimi talked about local government reorganisation and how it will make Worthing’s council less confusing.
Eventually we were able to ask a question on opposing cuts in line with Zack Polanski’s vision for a working-class Green Party, the councillors seemed to get stuck. Sam answered first and was clearly the most trained to do so, calling it ‘idealistic’ and ‘unfeasible’, citing the reduction of Southampton City Council’s government funding from £300 million to £100 million. We retorted instantly, bringing up his council’s reserves, which consist of £133 million. He was then essentially forced to agree, saying that although they shouldn’t be sitting on that money, he can’t pledge against cuts, rather that they would cut from areas which affect the smallest number of people (which tend to be marginalised groups and minorities).
It was becoming apparent that they had no serious plan to counter the establishment’s endless austerity and council tax increases.
Jimi led the response on cuts in Worthing, saying that a no-cuts budget was impossible since Worthing Borough Council is ‘bankrupt’, but that he would vote against cuts to safe roads, council housing and cultural services in the county council. He said it was a difficult question to answer before one of the chairs quickly moved on to a new question.
What will they do?
There were several party members who came up to me after the discussion to applaud me on challenging them. It revealed to them a worrying lack of a strategy to fight austerity. Something that will have to change if they are to act differently to previously elected Green councillors who have voted for cuts to services and hiked up council tax, almost without fail.
We hope that in future, those hopeful young Greens will challenge their leadership and push them to serve the working class.
