Answers by Brighton & Green Party in response to questions by B&H Friends of the Earth
1) Do you oppose selling off the city’s downland (like the forests nationally) to plug any future budget holes?
YES. Proper stewardship of the Downs is necessary to protect the underlying aquifer (and thus the city's drinking water), to provide activities that benefit physical and mental health, to benefit biodiversity and to play some role in supplying the city with food.
We believe that this stewardship is best advanced through ongoing public ownership by the Council. We don't believe in reducing everything to cash terms, but we are confident that the value of these 'ecosystem services' is immeasurably greater than a lump sum from selling off the family silver.
2) Do you support Brighton & Hove becoming a Biosphere Reserve (greening the city and improving quality of life and links to the Downs)?
YES. We are committed to working towards UN Biosphere status through programmes in rural and urban areas. We want to see a rich natural environment integrated with the city through initiatives such as green roofs and open spaces. We would also use ‘green corridors’ to join up the natural wildlife spaces within the city, and require the incorporation of biodiversity into our planning requirements.
We want to build on the partnership work of local experts and volunteers who guide and participate in the management of the city’s wild spaces.
We will also to encourage greater access to the Downs by supporting sustainable transport, and increase education about the downland estate on our doorstep. We would like to see an office for the South Downs National Park in the city centre to inform and encourage visitors.
3) Will you prioritise taking action to reduce carbon emissions (in line with Sustainable Community Strategy targets – 42% reduction in direct carbon emissions by 2020 and 80% reduction by 2050)?
YES. Greens made significant contributions to the development of the SCS, resulting in the inclusion of some key issues such as the carbon reduction targets, the role of transport and the notion of living within environmental limits.
Lowering our emissions will require using less energy, switching to low and zero-carbon sources, and reducing the amount of ‘embodied’ carbon in the products we consume. To achieve these we must look across the board at different areas. Key issues in Brighton & Hove include energy efficient homes and buildings, sustainable transport, and food.
For example we would like to see the retrofitting of existing buildings that can benefit from cavity wall and loft insulation, and aspire to become a demonstration city for 'harder to treat' buildings. We would also want to become a ‘decentralised energy city' by promoting a wide expansion in community and micro-scale renewable heat and electricity production, taking advantage of Feed in Tariffs and the Renewable Heat Incentive, and exploring new sources of finance. These schemes would also create local jobs and training opportunities for the city and lift vulnerable residents out of fuel poverty.
Greens would also promote walking and cycling infrastructure to reduce car dependency (see answers to 6) which would boost road safety and health. Similarly affordable and reliable public transport reduces emissions and improves accessibility across the city for residents on lower incomes. We have also made the case for locally-sourced food to be supported through the council’s procurement and food growing education, which can boost the local economy, and public health.
Reducing carbon emissions is a key priority, but is integrated into a wider approach to improve the city’s wellbeing.
4) Will you increase recycling and composting (in line with Sustainable Community Strategy targets – 70% citywide recycling / composting rate for domestic waste and 80% for commercial waste by 2025)?
YES. We will work towards a zero-waste Brighton & Hove with the ethos of reduce, reuse and recycle. We will promote city-wide waste reduction and food waste collection, encourage composting and continue to campaign for reduced packaging with shop goods. Food waste is a significant element of the waste going to landfill. We want to in the first instance reduce the amount of food being thrown away through education, and secondly encourage local composting and work on a city-wide waste collection. In our recent budget amendments we secured funding for a food waste collection pilot.
5) Will you prioritise buses to give them a green wave though traffic lights (to speed up services and reduce costs)?
YES. This is something we would look at to help ease congestion in the city, and reducing ‘waiting time’ for bus services. ‘Green Wave’ light systems are also used to help facilitate bike traffic in other cities around the world and this is something we would look to do more work on.
6) Will you work to significantly improve walking and cycling facilities?
YES. We want to see better infrastructure for walkers and cyclists while reducing the need for car dependency in the city. We want to build on the evidence that 20mph speed limits in residential areas will contribute to road safety and encourage a better environment for vulnerable road users. We also want to a programme to include for more dropped kerbs and benches to allow those with limited mobility to access pavements. We will allocate at least 10% of the transport budget to walking and cycling measures, working towards having a coherent network of safe cycle routes and a ‘pedestrian network’ across the city.
a) Do you support altering Pelican / Toucan crossings so that when pedestrians press the button, the lights change straight away? (to prevent pedestrians having to wait in all weathers and to reduce times when lights go red and hold up traffic after pedestrians have already crossed)
YES. We would like to see crossings prioritise pedestrians, and would like to see more ‘Puffin’ and zebra crossings which allow a better response time for pedestrians. Work would have to be done ensuring that any changes won’t conflict with our aim to reduce congestion and smooth the flow of buses through the city.
b) Altering one way streets to allow two-way cycling where it is safe to do so? (this would open up many quieter roads to cyclists making it safer to get around the city)
YES. We have absolutely supported the introduction of two-way cycling on one-way streets where the road is wide enough and where it is made clear to vehicles - permeability is a vital component of a cycling city.
7) Do you oppose the loss of industrial sites to out of / edge of town retail?
YES. ‘Out of town’ retail developments not only increase reliance upon cars for travel, but take business from local independent retailers in the city centre. We would prefer to see high quality industrial sites remaining that way to help encourage a sustainable and diverse economy in the city, while reducing carbon emissions.
8) Will you ensure that the Council uses the Community Engagement Framework to guide all future consultations?
YES. The Community Engagement Framework is a excellent and robust policy that helps ensure that there is proper support for local communities and partners to engage in the designing, delivering and monitoring local services. Greens will work to ensure that consultations and other forms of engagement with communities are informed by the CEF.
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