Rob Murphy commented “I hope I am re-elected so that I can continue to represent local people. I believe I am well known for addressing residents’ concerns and problems. I also want to give voters a real alternative to Labour and the Lib Dems, who simply aren’t tackling concerns about jobs, cuts and many other issues. More than 18,000 people voted Green in Sheffield last year, showing that many local residents realise that we are the best option.”

The Greens also announced that former Central ward councillor Bernard Little and recently graduated Sheffield University ex-student Amy Mack will be their candidates for the Broomhill and Crookes wards respectively.

Bernard Little commented :

“I’m really pleased to be the Green candidate again in Broomhill ward. It will be another close 3 party contest with Labour and the Lib Dems. I intend to work hard for Broomhill residents, building on the consistent work Greens have done in the area for more than a decade. “

Amy Mack commented :

“I am committed to working with Rob and Bernard in wards with a high student population to ensure their voice is heard and to help interaction with longer term residents. Students and young people are under represented on Sheffield council.”

Sheffield Greens, concerned that Housing Benefit cuts will mean Sheffield 6,700 people can no longer afford their rent, submitted a full council meeting question this week to ask what action the council would take?

From this month, the government is capping housing benefit payments across the private rented sector. Housing spokesperson Bernard Little, who asked the question comments

“Most people in receipt of housing benefit are pensioners, disabled people or families with children. It means that people on low incomes face the choice of cutting spending on food to pay their rent or having to move out of their home.

Most cuts will be about £10 a week. The Chartered Institute of Housing estimates an extra 6,700 properties in Sheffield will become un-affordable. In addition, single people up to the age of 35 will be expected to share accommodation, there will be extra cuts for people who have managed to find cheap accommodation and for very large families.

The Green Party believes there is no need for cuts in social welfare at the national level and that it is wrong to make people on the lowest incomes bear the highest cuts. We would make a far greater effort to provide much-needed social housing.

Locally, the Green Party would make the most of the discretionary funds available to the council, invest more in enforcement of standards in the private rented sector and extend energy efficiency schemes to reduce householders’ living costs.”

Dear Telegraph Editor.

Reporting on Occupy Sheffield has failed to acknowledge there has been no complaint from any local business about Occupy. In fact there have been positive responses from many local businesses in the city. The protest is outside the Cathedral due to its central location and its proximinity to a number of high street banks. It isn’t actually on city
council land.

The Dean’s recent letter regretting supposed inconvenience to these banks sadly ignores the tax they avoid paying which could fully fund the excellent Archer Project and others many thousand times over. He also ignores the obscene greed of the chief executive of Barclays for example, a man who gained £27m last year. Sadly he also omits that the
activities of these same banks have encouraged debt and fund unsustainable house prices, leaving many ordinary people in poverty and in need of services the Archer project and others provide when they fall into difficulty.

It is disappointing that both national and local media have failed to grasp this message. They have a key role in reporting on and supporting the Occupy movement and their campaign to encourage a fairer, more equitable society for the good of us all in 2012 and beyond.

Yours Sincerely,

Bernard Little.

Sheffield Green Party.

Sheffield Green Party will be supporting the strikes and protests in Sheffield on Wednesday 30th November.

Green Party spokeperson Bernard Little, who is an NHS employee and will be on strike himself, said

“We support decent pensions for all. The protests also draw attention to the government’s attacks on welfare and public services. People are angry about cuts to jobs and services which will harm the most vulnerable.”

Rally and March from City Hall, Barkers Pool from 12 noon .

Full Text Of Bernard’s Speech

My name is Bernard Little. I’m chair of Sheffield Green Party. We are supporting this strike. I’m a public sector worker, a therapy assistant at the Hallamshire Hospital and a member of Unison.

Nobody wants to strike, We’re public servants after all, doing responsible jobs. keeping the city going, educating our children, serving the most vulnerable in our neighbourhoods.

We’ve been forced into this strike because of relentless attacks on public servants by government. We’re left with no choice. Unless we take-a-stand it will get worse for everyone whether you’re in the public or private sector.

Cuts in pensions are a cut in pay. Many public sector workers are some of the lowest paid in the country. There is no need for these cuts, each year we lose £70 billion through tax evasion, £25 billion through tax avoidance and a further £25 billion of taxes that goes un-collected. It’s outrageous!

Public sector pensions are affordable. It’s a political choice about piling the UK’s debt burden onto the people who did least to create it.

In fact the Treasury has confirmed that increases in our pension contributions are not going into our pensions, they are to help pay for the financial crisis, a crisis which we were not responsible for.

The Green Party want a clamp down on tax evasion by the rich. We want a Robin Hood tax on financial transactions. We want an urgent review of the state pension so all of us can
live with dignity in our retirement.

Remember 10% of this country owns over half the wealth.

Remember the wealthy are paid hundreds of times the minimum wage, avoid taxes and hide their billions in offshore accounts.

Remember gambling with money is rewarded more than those who educate, who clean, who heal.

Remember 120 billion pounds of tax is lost from the public purse each year. There is no need for cuts to our pensions.

There is only a need for fairness and justice and for us to take a stand. Thank you.

Caroline Lucas MP

In March, Caroline Lucas MP tabled a Tax and Financial Transparency Bill aimed at tackling corporate tax evasion and avoidance.

She has now launched a related e-petition to galvanise public support for the proposed measures – we are also hoping that this will help to put pressure on the Government to make time available for the second reading of the Bill on 25 November and raise awareness of the issue more generally. Over 1,800 people  signed since 11 Oct.

Thepetition is here. Obviously the more signatures the better, so please feel free to circulate far and wide!

UK Uncut are supporting and have posted  video footage of Caroline here:

Co-Chair of Sheffield and Rotherham Green Party said

“We must stop the Banks and big business robbing us all by not paying their taxes. Those least responsible for economic failure are paying a terrible price. The local Green Party fully support this Bill and encourage as many people as possible to sign this petition.”

The Energy Secretary says he is going to sort out the big energy
companies. But energy bills continue to rise, millions are in fuel
poverty and low income households are struggling with the effects of
rising prices. The tax-free Winter Fuel Allowance is being cut from
£250 to £200 for the over 60′s and from £400 to £300 for the over
80s. It’s hard enough for pensioners to keep warm in winter, and
this cut is bound to make it harder.

The Green Party agree with Public and Commercial Service-PCS Union
research showing the country is loosing at least £120 billion a year
from tax avoidance and evasion. It is therefore scandalous that the
most vulnerable are faced with large cuts in their fuel allowances.

Yours Sincerely.

Bernard Little.

Co-Chair Sheffield & Rotherham Green Party

“We support the rights of groups of workers to strike if they feel that their pay, pensions, health and safety are under threat. The strikes and the demonstrations will draw attention to the wider attack on public services and the people who depend on them. We support protest against unfairness and policies which undermine the NHS, education and social services. We deplore the public sector cuts implemented by the Conservative led government and their impact on vulnerable groups. Cuts in social services, benefits, primary schools and children’s centre budgets really hurt lower income groups, pensioners, women and children. Plus carers and those in low-paid temporary work. ”

He continued : “There is a growing income gap in Britain. The Green Party is committed to creating a fair and just society and not transferring wealth from the poor to the rich.”

Sheffield Greens will be supporting the rally on Thursday.The march assembles at the Peace Gardens 12 noon and rally 1pm Barkers Pool.

“FAIR PENSIONS ARE WORTH FIGHTING FOR”: GREEN MP SPEAKS OUT IN SUPPORT OF PUBLIC SECTOR WORKERS

Commenting ahead of the public sector strikes across the country tomorrow, Brighton Pavilion MP and leader of the Green party of England and Wales, Caroline Lucas, said:

“Many teachers and other public sector workers have contacted me over the past week to express hope that striking wouldn’t be necessary – that the Prime Minister would start taking their pension concerns seriously. Sadly the Coalition Government’s relentless attack on this country’s public servants has left them with no choice.

“We know that public sector pensions are affordable – this is really about piling the UK’s debt burden onto the people who did the least to create it. I believe that fair pensions are worth fighting for, so I will be joining the picket lines in solidarity with my constituents who have been abandoned by the other main Westminster parties.

“This isn’t something I do lightly. I regret the disruption caused by industrial action and think it must only be used in special circumstances – and would urge trade unions to work hard to ensure support from the wider public.

“Yet when teachers are being expected to pay 50% more in pension contributions, work longer and get less pension when they retire – and when negotiations are failing – targeted and considered action is clearly necessary.”

Sheffield Green Party is calling on the University of Sheffield to improve its environmental record after it finished near the bottom of People and Planet’s “Green League” for 2011. They dropped 28 places to be ranked 114^th out of 138 universities with Hallam improving 7 places to a respectable 27^th.

Green party student society officer Brian Webster comments : “The recent referendum that banned the sale of bottled water in the Students Union shows how seriously students take environmental issues. Heat and emissions are pouring out of poorly insulated buildings where thermostats are often set at uncomfortably high temperatures wasting energy that has not been purchased from renewable sources. We see solar panel photo opportunities with Nick Clegg but masses of plasma screens rolled out across sites. This result should serve as a wake-up call for university management in Sheffield. ”

Sheffield Green Party Co-Chair Bernard Little comments : “Sheffield University emissions up 12.7% since 2005 is a poor performance for a body required to cut them under the Climate Change Act. Failing to meet their targets could cost them funding while energy efficiency measures can save the university a lot of money. Climate change is the biggest challenge facing us all. The University should be showing real leadership on emissions to both its students and to local residents.” ENDS

Promoted by Eamonn Ward on behalf of Sheffield Green Party, 73 Eskdale Road, Sheffield, S6 1SL

Notes :

Green league information can be viewed at http://peopleandplanet.org/greenleague

A full detailed breakdown of the University of Sheffield results can be viewed at http://peopleandplanet.org/green-league-2011/table?ggl11profile=5667&test=edf08b

The Green League was produced in conjunction with the Guardian. Their coverage is at http://www.guardian.co.uk/education

University of Sheffield Students Union has won a gold award for Green Initiatives – see http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/union/news.php?contentID=14037

Dear Sir

Sheffield Green Party would like to thank more than 18000 people who voted Green in Sheffield on May 5th. It was a Labour landslide but voters in Central ward decided to retain Green councillor Jillian Creasy as we came from 687 votes behind Labour in 2010 to defeat them by 193.

Numerous national newspapers wrongly reported that the council has been run by the Liberal Democrats with help from the Green Party. It even made the Ghana Times ! This is, of course, incorrect and we have never entered into coalition with the Lib Dems in Sheffield. People opted for the only party that actually opposed the Lib Dem cuts budget with action in the council chamber. Central voters recognised a decade of year round work across the whole of their ward. They realised that 4 more years with Jillian Creasy looking after them individually and collectively was their best option.

Yours Sincerely

Eamonn Ward

Election Agent

Sheffield Green Party

For the full results see wikipedia