Improving Democracy, Hearing all Voices
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The role of a Green Mayor is to serve our region, supporting the work of other elected councillors and community groups, not dictating to them. We reject the hierarchical structure of leaders and followers. My commitment to serve the region would mean:
- Not charging the £100,000 burden on each constituent council, which is currently included within the Combined Authority budget (carried over from the North of Tyne Combined Authority practice, which has been to charge each council a flat rate of £100k, regardless of wealth or council size)
- Ensuring that powers are always devolved to the lowest possible level – from Westminster to the Region, and from the Region to individual Councils and communities. A Green Mayor would never ask local councils to transfer their powers ‘upwards’ to the regional Combined Authority.
There are many functions that are best carried out at a local, not a regional level. A good example is waste and recycling policy. Evidence shows that initiatives to support waste reduction or reuse are best carried out at a local, or even an ultra-local level, with regional initiatives only suited to initiatives at the bottom of the waste policy hierarchy (such as incineration for energy recovery). Pursuing such regional initiatives undermines the more important imperative to reduce waste, reuse products or recycle materials. A good mayor will know when to resist a regional project, by always supporting councils to seek more local solutions if these are available.
Democracy
Combined Authorities are not the best bodies to oversee major funding and new powers. They are not sufficiently democratic and scrutiny of their decisions is inadequate. This will especially be the case for the North East Mayoral Combined Authority, which for 2024/5 at least will have members of the three biggest political parties represented on its Cabinet, and effectively no opposition councillors to challenge decisions through its Overview and Scrutiny Committee. An elected Mayor will not solve the democratic deficit, and may exacerbate it by concentrating further power in one person. We contest this election, not because we want new powers in the hands of a single person, but because it is the only route offered for the devolution of powers and funding that the North East needs.
If elected as your Green Mayor, I will strengthen scrutiny and democracy by:
- Asking the Oversight and Scrutiny Committee to appoint external members and an external Vice Chair, independent of any political party or Council. This committee can call in any Mayoral or Combined Authority decision for review.
- Ensuring that meetings are held in accessible town or city centre locations across the region, and streamed online.
- Campaigning for the power to align our local election rules with those of Scotland, giving the vote to 16-17 year olds and choosing elected representatives using the Single Transferable Vote.
As your Green Mayor, I will embrace and defend the Public Sector Equality Duty and the provisions of the Human Rights Act / European Convention on Human Rights. Many groups within our society do not enjoy the benefits of public services equally – for instance, housing provision is more limited for disabled people due to poor design, and public transport is not always safe for women or LGBTIQA+ people. Where groups have not had equal access to public services, I would establish panels from those groups, with the power to challenge proposals before decisions are made, or to request review of decisions already made. This would lead to better decision making, and improvements to design of services from an early stage.
A Voice for the Region
As your mayor, I would stand up for the North East. Green Leadership means winning power, not to exercise power over the region, but to empower communities and residents within the region to co-operate and take control. When representing the region nationally, I would amplify the voices of the North East within national government, not act as the voice of a Labour or Tory government within the North East.
- Using every opportunity to speak up for the region, challenging the Westminster government (whether Tory or Labour) to fund local government and local public services properly
- Working with other mayors, always on a cross-party basis for the benefit of our region, and never beholden to a party of Westminster.
Opportunities for further devolution of powers are mentioned within earlier sections of this manifesto. One area that is not covered is the provision of benefits and welfare. I am a long term enthusiast for a Universal Basic Income scheme, sufficient to cover an individual’s basic needs and unconditional. This could transform our society, eliminating unemployment and poverty traps. As an initial stage, I would provide funding for the Basic Income pilot scheme that has been worked on since 2019 by Big Local Central Jarrow.
A Voice for Future Generations
As your Green Mayor, I would champion the rights of Future Generations, recognising that they will suffer as a result of human-induced climate and biodiversity breakdown caused by current generations.
As a personal commitment to seeking collaborative, non-violent solutions to conflict, I would apply to join the Mayors for Peace network, becoming the country’s first regional mayor to do so. This network was initiated by the Mayors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and brings together cities that work together to press for nuclear abolition.
I have signed the Plant Based Treaty as an individual, and will re-sign as North East Mayor, to ensure that we can have a resilient food supply and mitigate climate change.
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