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The Green Party in Bristol has today announced their four parliamentary candidates ahead of a potential snap general election. Molly Scott Cato MEP has been elected to stand as their candidate to challenge for the hotly contested Bristol West parliamentary seat. Bristol West is widely considered to be one of the most winnable seats in the country for The Green Party.
Alongside Molly, Bristol Green Party have elected a full slate of parliamentary candidates for Bristol. The other selected candidates are, Tony Dyer for Bristol South, Sharmila Bousa for Bristol North West and Lorraine Francis for Bristol East.
Jonathan Bartley, the Co-Leader of The Green Party who was in Bristol to make the announcement commented,
“I am delighted to see Bristol Green Party select Molly Scott Cato, the city’s current MEP, as their candidate. Molly is already an incredibly influential MEP, a professor in economics and at her heart a radical campaigner. I can’t think of anyone better to represent Bristol.”
“At the next election, whenever it happens, the Green Party will be putting forward a plan to meet the challenges of the twenty first century. From protecting our NHS from privatisation, to tackling climate change and defending migrants – we’re united in our vision of a better Britain.”
Tony Dyer who has been selected for the second time running to be the Green candidate for Bristol South said,
“I am very proud to have been reselected as the Green Party’s prospective parliamentary candidate for Bristol South. The south of the city faces severe challenges especially continuing cuts to public services, housing, transport, and education and skills. However it is not enough for me to simply identify the problems we face – I fully intend to propose radical solutions intended to spark the debate on how we enable our part of the city to finally fulfil its considerable potential.”
Lorraine Francis, who has also been selected for a second time to be the Green candidate for Bristol East commented,
“I am deeply moved and delighted to be selected by my peers within the party. It is an honour to have the support for the second time running to represent the community within Bristol East. My priorities for the coming months is to reach out to the community and support the huge amount of ongoing green activities. In particular we have to find solutions to manage open green spaces and continue to work for the wellbeing of young people any adults within the community.”
Sharmila Bousa, newly elected candidate for Bristol North West commented,
“I’m pleased to have been selected to represent the Green Party in Bristol North West. It’s a privilege to represent the party in such a diverse part of this great city. It’s an exciting time for the Green Party and I feel we could make some real in roads in this constituency. I will be focusing on hitting the ground running and listening to what issues concern people most. Key priorities such as affordable housing, rental regulation and regeneration of local high streets and support for local businesses through improvement of public transport links rank high on my list of priorities.”
The candidate for Bristol West and the city’s current MEP, Molly Scott Cato said,
“I am honoured to have been trusted by Bristol Green Party to fight the Bristol West seat which I believe we can and must win when the election comes. Bristol has long been a beacon for green creativity and it seems long overdue that this was represented at Westminster. With the city facing devastating cuts to services it is important to fight the destructive politics of austerity and as an economist I am well placed to do this on behalf of the people of Bristol.
She continued, “Caroline Lucas has demonstrated what a Green MP can achieve since being elected in 2010: bringing the NHS Reinstatement Bill and a bill to bring the railways back into public ownership before MPs as well as battling against fracking and nuclear power and for renewable energy. But imagine what we could do with more Greens in the House of Commons. The country needs greater Green representation and Bristol West is the place to make this happen.”
Leader of the Green Group on Bristol City Council Charlie Bolton welcomed the announcements saying, “I know that each of these four candidates will do us proud. On Bristol City Council we have shown what an effective opposition can look like. In the European Parliament Molly has been an incredible ambassador for Bristol and Green politics. I can’t wait to see Bristol properly represented in Westminster. We have waited a long time for this but it is surely now time for a Green MP in Bristol.”