Our joined-up policies all support a Green Vision for Cornwall that turns the climate and ecological emergency into a new lease of life. Greens are not about business as usual – if we want Cornwall to make real progress towards a fairer and more sustainable future, we urgently need Greens in the rooms where decisions are made that can make this happen.
MORE POWERS AND FUNDING FOR CORNWALL TO TACKLE THE HOUSING CRISIS
We need more affordable social homes – not more unaffordable private housing that’s out of reach for local people. Green Councillors will press for Cornwall Council to be given powers and funding to:
- Introduce rent controls in areas where rents have become unaffordable
- Introduce a licensing system to restrict the spread of second homes, Airbnb properties and holiday homes
- Have first right to buy on private rental properties deemed to be substandard, so that these can be refurbished as good-quality council housing
- Levy a tourist tax of £1.50 per visitor per night and use the money raised to create more affordable social housing
- Accelerate the home insulation programme, helping to tackle fuel poverty and reduce household energy bills
For any private housing development that includes an element of affordable housing, Green Councillors will fight to make sure that the affordable element is built first, so that private developers don’t wriggle out of their obligations.
Real devolution and local democracy
For Greens, the health and wellbeing of local people are at the heart of all our policies.
Cornwall needs genuine decentralisation of powers and funding to improve homes, services and nature protection. This is best done at local level, trusting local communities to know what’s best for them and supporting them with investment to deliver real change, not by imposing plans made by remote super-councils many miles away.
And true democracy must include a fair proportional voting system for local elections. Elected Green councillors will press for a democratically elected Cornish Assembly to exercise control over devolved powers.
PROTECTING THE NATURAL WORLD
Green councillors will always fight to protect Cornwall’s precious natural environment and stop destructive development, for instance of:
- Out-of-town supermarkets that take custom from small local businesses and suck the life out of town centres
- Private housing schemes built on greenfield sites – often without adequate local services or public transport links, leading to increased car-dependency
We also want to see Cornwall Council do more to stop the sewage that’s polluting our waterways, by:
- Taking legal action to make polluters pay for repeated releases of sewage into rivers and onto beaches
- Properly enforcing planning regulations that require housing developers to provide adequate drainage for new developments
BETTER, CHEAPER PUBLIC TRANSPORT AND SAFER STREETS FOR CYCLISTS & PEDESTRIANS
Many people would use their cars less if there were better, cheaper bus services – and many people on low incomes don’t have a car. Green Councillors will press for:
- Restoration of the £2 maximum bus fare for local journeys
- Demand-responsive minibus services for underserved rural communities
- Extension of the 20mph speed limit for all residential streets
- Better facilities for active travel – e.g. clearly marked cycle lanes
Revitalising communities and cornwall’s local economy
Green councillors will always work towards thriving local communities. In making decisions on planning and Council spending, we’ll do our best to make sure that everyone has access to:
- Essential local services such as GPs, doctors, NHS dentists, schools and libraries – preferably in walking distance or easily accessible by public transport.
We’ll also fight to ensure that:
- Most money spent by Cornwall Council is spent on local providers and doesn’t flow to companies based outside Cornwall. This helps to build community wealth and create local jobs.