A message from Robin Harper MSP, Scottish Green Party candidate for Edinburgh East
Greens have been elected to Holyrood for eleven years now, and we’ve made a significant impact on the political landscape. Our record of achievements in each of those eleven years shows what even a small team can do in parliamentary debate, in policy making and in legislation.
From my early action as the first Green parliamentarian anywhere in the UK, I’ve had to work creatively to make the maximum impact. I forced the first government’s hand on organic farming, improved the laws protecting National Parks, and laid the ground work for legislation to tackle hate crime.
Later, with a larger group of MSPs, and now working with Patrick Harvie in a tightly balanced Parliament, I’ve had to create opportunities to challenge the other parties. There could be no better experience for a Green MP to take to Westminster.
Our time at Holyrood has seen greater progress for Green policies than we could ever have hoped for, with Patrick leading the scrutiny of the Scottish Climate Change Act.
The balance of parties at Holyrood has given us the chance to put Green ideas into action, ensuring that the Scottish budget funded projects like the home insulation programme to slash people’s bills while cutting emissions. Similarly, the Climate Challenge Fund has already helped hundreds of community groups to do great work on reducing our impact on the environment.
We have seen our first Green Bill passed by the Parliament, ensuring that hate crimes are taken seriously in Scotland, as well as securing much-needed changes to strengthen the Marine Bill and the Climate Change Bill.
Two Green MSPs achieved all this, as well as winning votes against new coal power, and working with others to save the Edinburgh trams and to scrap tuition fees for good. Just think what even a small number of Green MPs could do in Westminster.
Don’t waste your vote by giving it to one more MP from the tired Westminster parties – vote Green and send a fresh and radical voice to Parliament.
