Bob currently is the programme lead for FutureIN, an initiative dedicated to inspiring and upskilling young people in the construction industry. As a former director at Morgan Sindall Construction based in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, he was at the forefront of delivering innovative projects that prioritised sustainability and positive impacts on local communities.

Bob was as a Non-Executive Director for the Employment and Skills Board for two years on Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority, where he championed employment opportunities for disadvantaged young people in the region.

Bob’s commitment to environmental stewardship and social equity makes him an ideal candidate. His vision for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough includes investing in green infrastructure, and fostering a vibrant, inclusive economy.

Bob said: “I am thrilled to represent the Green Party in this mayoral election. Together, we can build a region that not only thrives economically but also leads the way in environmental innovation and social progress.”

The Green Party urges residents across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough to support Bob Ensch’s campaign and join the movement for a greener and brighter future.

Join the Green Party today: https://join.greenparty.org.uk/

The post Bob Ensch Announced as Green Candidate for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Mayoral Election appeared first on Cambridge & South Cambridgeshire Green Party.

Green County council candidate, Kathryn Fisher explained:

“The Chancellor is desperately scrabbling around for a plausible magic growth bullet in order to prop up Labour’s ludicrous fiscal rules that don’t allow them to tax the super rich.”

She continued: “She sees Cambridge as this magic bullet, but the city doesn’t need growth, it needs investment in social housing and infrastructure. We should be investing in the old industrial heartlands in the north by redeveloping post-industrial sites, not pumping even more money into one of the most unequal, nature deprived and water-depleted cities in the country, by building million pound apartments all over the green belt.”

“People who don’t know the Cambridge area and its problems well might be fooled, but there is no way that the government’s plan can work even purely in economic terms.” she added.  “However, we have gone beyond problems that can be solved by magic money trees. Every suggested solution raises a whole host of new problems . Magical thinking puts the economy at risk as well as the environment.”

For months, the Green Party has been calling for higher wages for lower-paid workers and an end to austerity measures that have crippled public services. In her speech, Reeves stated the government would be looking at “the rising cost of health and disability benefits”. A compassionate and competent government would work harder to stop people becoming too ill to work in the first place. It should not put up with companies that make large profits by paying workers so little that they must claim in-work benefits to survive. 

Green County council candidate, Darren Green said: “It is time to increase taxes on the accumulated wealth of big businesses and billionaires to redistribute resources and rebuild our broken public services. We must prioritise the needs of the people and the planet over the interests of the wealthy few. The climate crisis cannot be ignored.”

The Green Party welcomes well-paying, unionised jobs, but if Labour doesn’t take urgent action on the climate crisis, there will be no jobs on a dead planet. We say no to austerity, no to the destruction of our environment, and yes to a fairer, greener future for all.

The post Greens Call for urgent investment in social housing, climate action, and fair wages appeared first on Cambridge & South Cambridgeshire Green Party.

Cambridge Water Failures Pose Threat To Environment And Water Supply

The annual reviews by Ofwat, the Environment Agency and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) of the performance of England’s water companies were published on 21 October ¹. Jean Glasberg, Green Party City Councillor, says: “These letters make shocking reading. They provide the detail behind the recent national publicity on the scandalous failure of the water industry.”

The letter to Cambridge Water ², the supplier of the city’s water, states clearly that “Your current performance is a risk to the environment and security of supply…” and points out that there is an on-going deficit in the ‘supply-demand’ balance. Despite the alarms that have been raised, the company is still not addressing the challenge of supplying the rising need for water, much of it due to new development, nor has it reduced the impact of its abstractions on the environment, including harm to chalk streams. Perhaps not surprisingly, Cambridge Water’s 2025 draft Water Resources Management Plan has still not been approved by Defra.

The letter explains how, in 2019, Cambridge Water forecast the improvements it would have made by 2024, and shows that these have not been achieved. Key failures are: interruptions in supply (72% above the forecast and due mainly to system breakdowns or pollution); delay in installing water meters; and leakage from pipes. The significant increase in demand from the non-household sector, including new science parks, is not adequately addressed and there are questions over data accuracy. The company has until 29th November to explain the action it will take on the problems identified ³.

The post Greens call for urgent action following publication of regulators’ reviews of the water industry appeared first on Cambridge & South Cambridgeshire Green Party.

Kathryn Fisher has been selected as Green Party candidate for the Histon and Impington by-election of 24 October 2024. More information here.

The post Kathryn Fisher Selected as Green Party Candidate for Histon and Impington By-Election appeared first on Cambridge & South Cambridgeshire Green Party.

Urgent action needed to tackle pollution, flooding and water shortages

Cambridgeshire residents are facing rising water bills with proposed price hikes of 13-14%¹. But we are confronted with polluted rivers and failing sewage treatment plants, dried up chalk streams, and both flooding and drought which are damaging agriculture, roads and other infrastructure and affecting our health. The water companies themselves predict an insufficient supply of water by 2030².

The Greens are therefore calling on the Council to declare full recognition of the water emergency, the impact that this is already having on communities, businesses and the environment in Cambridge, and the potentially disastrous consequences it is leading to.

Jean Glasberg says “The City Council declared biodiversity³ and climate⁴ emergencies in 2019, which have helped to raise awareness of, and accelerate action on these critical issues, including influencing planning and other decisions. We need a water emergency declaration for the same reasons. Global heating is causing extreme weather events which are having a serious impact on our water resources. Under the Climate Change Act 2008, water companies are legally obliged to take action to adapt to the future impacts of climate breakdown⁵. We need clear evidence that they are doing this.”

Urgent action is needed to address the current crisis, including full scrutiny of planning applications for large-scale developments. Full weight must be given to the evidence of the Environment Agency (a statutory consultee) in relation to water. The highest water efficiency standards should be required for any new developments, including mandatory greywater collection and recycling, a policy that the Greater Cambridge Shared Planning Service claims to promote but which is not being fully implemented.

Greens are also requesting the Council to write to the Rt Hon Angela Rayner to demand that planning matters in Cambridge and South Cambridgeshire remain under the control of the local authorities and asking for the Written Ministerial Statement on the Cambridge Delivery Group⁶, of May 2024, to be replaced with a new statement that requires greater priority to be given to water issues in local planning applications.

Cambridge has the potential to become a model ‘sponge’ city⁷, a concept being pursued in other cities, where the creation of places with multiple areas of greenery, trees, ponds, soakaways, pocket parks, rain gardens and permeable paving is actively encouraged. The Council needs to engage with the water companies, but also put pressure on them to cap abstraction from the Chalk aquifer at today’s levels, rapidly increase efforts to repair leaks, and manage demand more effectively. While the Council itself must do all it can to encourage residents to use less water, we also need accelerated introduction of universal metering and the prompt declaration of hosepipe bans when needed.

The post Greens Call for Declaration of a Water Emergency in Cambridge appeared first on Cambridge & South Cambridgeshire Green Party.

The post Local Party Candidates for General Election 2024 appeared first on Cambridge & South Cambridgeshire Green Party.

Miranda Fyfe has been selected as Green Party prospective parliamentary candidate in South Cambridgeshire for the General Election 2024.

Miranda has lived in Cambridgeshire for over 30 years. An active member of the Stapleford village community, she has worked in NHS management and is a keen campaigner for Active Travel and public transport, who practises what she preaches. More information here.

The post Miranda Fyfe Selected as Green Party Candidate for South Cambridgeshire appeared first on Cambridge & South Cambridgeshire Green Party.

Abbey – Naomi Bennett

Elected with 52% of vote.

Coleridge – Sarah Nicmanis

Second with 34% of vote.

Newnham – Hugh Clough

Elected with 46% of vote.

The post Green Results for Cambridge City Council Elections 2024 appeared first on Cambridge & South Cambridgeshire Green Party.

The post Statement from Sarah Nicmanis Ahead of Local Elections appeared first on Cambridge & South Cambridgeshire Green Party.

The full version of the manifesto can be found here. The shortened version is here.

The post Local Green Party Releases Manifesto for 2024 appeared first on Cambridge & South Cambridgeshire Green Party.