Green Party candidates standing for a seat on Edinburgh City Council are promising action to tackle poverty and pollution – two issues which will be at the core of their campaigns ahead of the local elections.
All 63 seats in the chamber will be up for grabs in a matter of weeks when voters head to the polls on May 5. For the first time, the environment-focused, pro-independence party is fielding candidates in all of the city's 17 wards.
Having made incremental gains at each vote since the introduction of the Single Transferable Vote system in 2007 when the party's first three councillors were elected in the city, with a further three joining the group in 2012 and two more in 2017, it's hoped that giving more voters the opportunity to back them will see this growth continue.
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Edinburgh, with eight of Scotland's 17 Green councillors, will be a key battleground, particularly in wards such as Sighthill/Gorgie and Inverlieth where candidates missed out by a few hundred votes at the previous election.
After picking up two more seats at last year's Holyrood elections and subsequently entering a power sharing agreement with the SNP, the party is likely to hold its position as Edinburgh's fourth biggest party ahead of the Liberal Democrats – and even stands a chance of overtaking Labour in third and helping to form Scotland's first council administration involving the Greens.
Co-convenor Steve Burgess, who was amongst that first cohort of councillors elected 15 years ago, said: "At every election since 2007 we have seen more and more Green councillors elected. If voters continue to put their faith in us, then we will certainly be trying to exert the most influence on the council that we can to deliver Green priorities, whether or not that means being part of a council administration or in constructive opposition."
He explained the "two biggest issues facing Edinburgh" are "poverty and pollution", two key topics which will be addressed in the Edinburgh Greens' manifesto when it's published next month.
Councillor Burgess said: "The City has very pronounced differences in wealth side by side across many areas. And it's this disparity that leads to a lot of social problems.
"In terms of pollution we still have around 60,000 commuting vehicles coming into Edinburgh every day causing illegal levels of air pollution and climate-changing emissions. The city has so far failed to get to grips with this and the car is still dominant with pedestrians and wheelers currently pushed aside.
"Edinburgh council really does have a crucial opportunity to lead the whole city on the climate emergency. Greens pushed the council to set a target of net zero emissions by 2030 but not nearly enough urgency or resource is going into delivering on this from the current council coalition."
Group co-convenor Claire Miller stressed the 2022 to 2027 council term will be "a critical period" for limiting the effects of climate change.
She said: "That’s my biggest priority and I know that many Edinburgh residents agree and support our policies on this."
Having been on the campaign trail for several weeks now, Councillor Miller reported that the city's residents "are concerned about the cost of living, about road safety, and about helping young people to get back on track with their school, college and university courses".
If elected again, she wants to continue campaigns to improve air quality, build more safe, segregated cycle lanes and to make public transport "the best choice for folk who want to get around the city using motorised transport."
Hoping to take the reigns from Mary Campbell, incumbent councillor for Portobello/Craigmillar who's stepping down in May, Alys Mumford said she decided to put herself forward as a candidate "because of the lack of women in our city chamber."
She added: "As a young woman I want to see more people represented at council level."
The Leither – a keen cyclist and member of Portobello Community Choir – said she wants wants Edinburgh "to work for everyone."
"It’s so disappointing that we still see people being excluded from living, working and enjoying themselves here because of things like astronomical rents, selfish pavement parking, or poorly lit public spaces," she said.
Alys also hopes to challenge gender inequality and engage in debates around "how we can reckon with Edinburgh’s past by renaming our streets, creating new statues and monuments, and looking at who is missing in our democratic structures."
For the Greens' Inverlieth ward candidate Jule Bandel, it won't just be her first time standing in a council election, but also her first time voting in one.
The German-born climate campaigner moved to Edinburgh in 2006, and following years of activism put herself forward in a bid to make the council more representative of the city's communities.
"As a young immigrant woman, I want to bring a greater diversity of experiences to the council and plan on addressing some of the issues councils have neglected so far, like high rents, safe ways to get around the city when you don’t own a car, and climate action," she said.
The Greens narrowly missed out on Inverleith's fourth seat in 2017 and it's expected to be a tight race between the Conservatives, Greens and Labour this time around.
In a bid to get more on side in the ward, Jule is drawing voters attention to recent flooding events in Stockbridge and Canonmills, which she said "has certainly brought the issue to the front of people’s minds and highlighted the need for adapting our built environment."
She added: "Preventing more of these adverse climate impacts in future is even more important. Fortunately, many of the solutions needed to tackle climate change will also reduce inequality, another major issue Edinburgh faces."
Meanwhile, in north Edinburgh's Forth ward, hopeful Kayleigh O’Neill is campaigning for better accessibility for disabled people living in the capital.
The full-time wheelchair user, originally from North Lanarkshire, said she's "always been interested in a career that would allow me to address the different issues that disabled people face".
And as a case worker for Green MSP and Scottish Government minister Lorna Slater, Kayleigh is no stranger to politics and has witnessed first-hand "the huge amount of influence that local authorities can have over an individual’s independence."
She said: "I want to make sure that expanding and improving wheelchair accessible spaces is at the top of the council agenda."
She said that despite encountering some "physical barriers" whilst out campaigning, this has only further inspired her to get elected, adding: "I want to do everything I can to reduce these barriers for future candidates and for people across Edinburgh."
Returning to the election race after being within just 200 votes of gaining a seat in Sighthill/Gorgie in 2017, Dan Heap is standing in the ward again this May.
A university lecturer specialising in social security, he has assisted the Greens in formulating policies, some of which have been passed by the Scottish Government.
Helping to end benefit sanctions through Scottish employment programmes and ban "unnecessary" disability benefits assessments showed Dan "just how influential Greens can be when they can get elected to office, whether local or national," he said.
He is in favour of using "tried-and-tested ways of reducing poverty" such as supporting people to access the financial support they are entitled to, highlighting that an estimated £70 to £80million of social security "goes unclaimed in Edinburgh."
If elected, the candidate wants to help improve Sighthill/Gorgie's cycling, wheeling and walking infrastructure, tackle fly-tipping and "support our community groups working hard to vivify our communities".
All Edinburgh candidates announced by the Green Party so far are:
- Claire Miller - City Centre
- Kayleigh O’Neill - Forth
- Jule Bandel - Inverleith
- Dan Heap - Sighthill/Gorgie
- Megan McHaney - Fountainbridge Craiglockhart
- Ben Parker - Morningside
- Susan Rae - Leith Walk
- Chas Booth - Leith
- Alex Staniforth - Craigentinny Duddingston
- Steve Burgess - Southside Newington
- John Nichol - Liberton Gilmerton
- Alys Mumford - Portobello Craigmillar
- Andrew Brough- Almond
- Anne Scott - Drum Brae Gyle
- Connal Hughes - Costorphine/Murrayfield
- Helen McCabe - Colinton/Fairmliehead
- Ross Muller - Pentland Hills
