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| Green Party in Northern Ireland | |
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| Leader | Brian Wilson MLA |
| Headquarters | First Floor, 76 Abbey Street, Bangor |
| Youth wing | Young Greens |
| Ideology | Green politics |
| Political position | Left-wing, Non-sectarian, Centrist |
| National affiliation | England & Wales, Ireland and Scotland |
| International affiliation | Global Greens |
| European affiliation | European Green Party |
| European Parliament Group | European Greens–European Free Alliance |
| Official colours | Green and Blue |
| Website | |
| http://www.greenpartyni.org | |
| Politics of Northern Ireland Political parties Elections |
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The Green Party in Northern Ireland is a political party in Northern Ireland, based on the principles of Green politics. It has one Assembly Member elected to the Stormont Assembly and three councillors. It works in co-operation with Green parties across Europe. Like many Green parties around the world, the Greens have their origins in the anti-nuclear, labour and peace movements of the 1970s and early 1980s.
In 2007, the Greens made electoral history when the first Green MLA Brian Wilson from North Down was elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly. In the European Election of 2009 the Green Party stood Steven Agnew and managed to triple their vote from 4,800 votes to 15,674 votes. The Greens fought the election on the Green New Deal calling for job creation in the green energy sector.
The party has a youth wing, the Young Greens.
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Policies
The Green Party operates from four key values - social justice, environmental sustainability, grassroots democracy and non-violence. The Green Party has been involved in several major campaigns since entering the Assembly including a Clean Rivers Campaign, it has also campaigned against the development of incinerators at Belfast North Foreshore and Lough Neagh. The Party has also been fighting against proposals to extend the airport runway at George Best Belfast City Airport.
The Greens have called for funding to be focused on improving public transport and for the creation of an independent Environmental Protection Agency for Northern Ireland. They also campaign for a shift to alternative energy for Northern Ireland and were involved in the setting up of a lobby group for the sector.
The Green Party is the only political party in the UK or Ireland which does not accept corporate donations.
History
In the Northern Ireland local elections of May 1981 local council elections, Peter Emerson, Avril McCandless and Malcolm Samuels stood as the first candidates to use the Ecology label in Northern Ireland and gained 233, 81 and 61 votes respectively, the first in a large urban area, the other two in smaller rural constituencies.
In May 1983, the Northern Ireland Ecology Party was launched at a press conference held in the Europa Hotel, Belfast with members of the British and Irish Ecology Parties in attendance. At the same time, the three parties put forward the one combined policy on Northern Ireland, the first time that UK and Irish political parties had held a common Northern Ireland policy.
In 1985, ecology parties throughout the Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom changed their names to Green Party.
The Green Party in Northern Ireland now operates as a region of the Irish Green Party, with links with the Scottish Green Party and the Green Party of England and Wales.[citation needed] These arrangements demonstrate the Northern Ireland party's cross-community nature, as the Green Party claim to be the only party that actually lives the Good Friday Agreement through its operational set up through North-South and East-West links.[citation needed]
Electoral history
The party's first electoral success in Northern Ireland was at the local council elections of 2005. Cllr Raymond Blaney was elected onto Down District Council and Brian Wilson, formerly of the Alliance Party, took a seat on North Down Borough Council. The party's third local councillor was Ciaran Mussen, appointed to Newry and Mourne District Council.
There have been a few changes since in the Downpatrick area. Cllr Bill Corry took the Downpatrick seat after Cllr Blaney retired and in 2008 Cllr Cadogan Enright was co-opted onto the council in place of Cllr Corry who retired.
At the Northern Ireland Assembly election, 2007, the Green Party won its first seat in the Northern Ireland Assembly, when Brian Wilson won a seat in the North Down constituency. Overall the party won 11,985 first preference votes or 1.7% of the total - a rise of 1.4% since the 2003 Assembly election.
2007 also saw the establishment of the Greens at Queen's.[1]
Since entering the Northern Ireland Assembly the Green Party has campaigned for an independent Environmental Protection Agency, alternative energy grants, a nuclear-free Northern Ireland and GM free Northern Ireland.
In 2009 the Green Party stood Steven Agnew in the European election - he secured 15,674 votes, trebling the Green Party vote.
Officers
The Green Party's co-chairs are Dr Mark Bailey and Karley Greene.
The Party has spokespeople in the following areas:
- North Down: Steven Agnew / Dr. John Barry / Brian Wilson MLA / Kelly Andrews
- South Antrim: Pete Whitcroft & Lindsay Whitcroft
- South & East Belfast: Adam McGibbon / Dr. Peter Doran
- Downpatrick: Cllr Cadogan Enright
- Newcastle: John Hardy
- Newry & Mourne: Cllr Ciaran Mussen
- North Coast: Garrett Mussen
- East Antrim: Dr. Mark Bailey
- North Belfast: Peter Emerson
- Mid Ulster: Denice Corbett
Elected representatives
- Brian Wilson, MLA for North Down and North Down Borough Councillor
- Ciaran Mussen has been involved in local politics in Northern Ireland since at least 1985 when he was elected to Newry & Mourne council as an Independent Nationalist.[2]. He stood for the Green Party in 2005 and has campaigned for the right of people living in social housing to alternative energy.[3]
- Cadogan Enright was co-opted onto Down District Council in 2008 taking over from Cllr Bill Corry who retired. A life long environmentalist, Cllr Enright joined the Green Party in the mid 1990’s over his concerns regarding climate change. A chartered and certified accountant with post graduate qualifications in building standards, Cllr Enright is one of the founding members of Sustainable Development Ltd. based in Downpatrick. The company promotes environmentally friendly building standards and small scale renewable energy.[4]
See also
- Green Party in Northern Ireland politicians
- Demography and politics of Northern Ireland
- Green party
- Green Party (Ireland)
- Green politics
- List of environmental organizations
References
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This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please improve this article by introducing more precise citations where appropriate. (April 2008) |
External links
- Green Party in Northern Ireland (official website)
- Down District Green Party
- Antrim Green Party
- QUB Greens Blog
- Green Bloggers
- Green Party N.Ireland Photo Database
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