Ken Loach ("Was it futile to march? No! No! No!", March 21) deserves respect for his commitment to peace and justice, but his dismissal of the Greens as offering nothing more than "concern about the environment" shows insufficient respect for a party that has not only been a key member of the anti-war coalition but has also developed over many years an economic and social alternative to the three main parties that he claims was lacking until the Respect Coalition came along.
Green Party policies include renationalisation of the rail network, defence of the human rights of migrants, rejection of market-driven economic globalisation and an end to the nuclear state in both its civil and its military aspects. The Greens already have two MEPs, narrowly elected in 1999. By splitting the vote for peaceful and radical policies, the Respect Coalition could prove, despite its good intentions, to be Tony Blair's best friend.
George Galloway (Mea culpa, that's what we want, June 2) agrees that the
Green Party opposed the Iraq invasion from the start. The main reason he
gives for not voting Green on June 10 is that Greens also have other
policies - and they're not just about free-range eggs, George.
Greens in Europe have been the strongest opponents of GM foods and have led
resistance to the EU's current policy of further deregulation of trade and
investment. Those who want to keep Europe's environmental and food safety
regulations but fear that the single currency would hurt public spending and
cause further privatisation won't have to hold their noses while voting
Green.
According to George, a Respect vote will have "only one unambiguous
meaning". A Green vote, on the other hand will have multiple meanings. It
will be a vote against the Iraq war, against privatisation, against GM food,
against expansion of air transport, against the single currency, against
economic globalisation. It will be a vote for real action on global
warming, for a tax on currency speculation, for better public transport and
for a job-creating green industrial revolution based on clean energy and
energy-saving technologies. And according to the opinion polls, Greens are
more likely to get elected.
Published and promoted by Brian Fewster on behalf of the Green Party and himself as candidate at 89a Winchester Avenue, Leicester LE3 1AY.
Response to George Galloway's Guardian Piece, June 2
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