Greens welcome move towards energy-efficient white goods

Comet, the electrical goods retailer, is offering its customers a 20% discount if they trade-in old white goods appliances for a new model. The pilot scheme by Comet will run until the 14th of September.

The UK has roughly 15 million fridges, freezers and washing machines that are over ten years old. Darren Johnson, the Green Party's trade and industry spokesperson, said: "A white goods scrappage scheme will only be effective in reducing energy if there is a commitment to stop selling poorly-rated goods. Otherwise, people just risk trading in one energy-inefficient appliance for another.

We also need a more flexible VAT rate that takes account of the energy rating of household appliances."

Greens object to police tactics at Vestas occupation

Police at the Vestas wind turbine factory occupation on the Isle of Wight have been preventing food being brought to protesters.

Acting without an injunction on private property, police officers have forcibly removed people, and repeatedly tried to break into the office where the protesting workers have barricaded themselves.

Police have also threatened the workers with arrest for aggravated trespass, despite no damage to the property where the protest is taking place.

Jenny Jones, home affairs spokesperson for the Green Party, said:

"This is a very heavy handed response and will do the police no favours with the general public who will understand the need to keep the company going. Factory occupations are usually a civil matter and using the police to deny people food is shameful and far from progressive policing. Workers protesting to keep their jobs shouldn't be starved out by the police."

Darren Johnson, the party's spokesperson on trade and industry, and parliamentary candidate for Lewisham Deptford, will be speaking at an emergency demonstration in front of the Department for Energy and Climate Change, 3 Whitehall Place (next to Trafalgar Square), at 6pm tonight.

Johnson said that:

"The government says it supports a seven-fold increase in renewables, but it is failing to stop the loss of 600 wind turbine manufacturing jobs at Vestas. The closure of the Vestas plant would lead to a 20% increase in unemployment across the Isle of Wight. Now is the time for Ed Miliband to match actions with words, starting with Vestas."

Nuclear power? No point, says new report

A new report from the Green Party makes a powerful case that nuclear power has no rationale in terms of either economics or helping the fight against dangerous climate change.

In Nuclear Power? No Point! the Green Party's spokesperson on trade and industry, Darren Johnson AM, reviews recent developments and argues that:

• Nuclear power provides less than 4% of UK energy - which is far less than could be saved by energy-efficiency measures that would cut people's fuel bills.
• New nuclear stations will not help the fight against climate change because major CO2 reductions are needed in the next ten years. New nuclear power stations could not be built fast enough.
• Massive investment in renewables could deliver the necessary short-term CO2 cuts - but "feeding cash to the nuclear delusion" could help starve the renewables industry of some of the investment and skilled personnel it needs to grow rapidly.
• The nuclear industry's current financial problems cast serious doubt on its ability to deliver new powerstations anyway.

Darren Johnson, who is currently chair of the London Assembly and Green Party candidate for Lewisham Deptford, said today:

"The industry that was going to produce electricity 'too cheap to meter' has landed us with massive costs for handling its dangerous waste. Now the nuclear industry can't even give us a reliable quote for the cost of a power station. The current projects in Finland and France are experiencing safety concerns, long delays and big overspends.

"There's no point expecting nuclear to solve the climate crisis, because new stations couldn't be built fast enough to help achieve the big CO2 reductions we need to make in the next ten years - which mature renewables could deliver.

"There is no point even considering nuclear power, because demand-reduction measures could easily save far more power than nuclear could generate. And the latest studies argue convincingly that green energy sources with a European smart grid could provide all the power we need."

Nuclear "offers nothing for the recession, and too few jobs per megawatt anyway"

In Nuclear Power? No Point! Mr Johnson also draws attention to nuclear power's poor jobs-per-megawatt ratio. He said today:
"We urgently need a Green New Deal to get us out of the recession and start building the sustainable economy of the twenty-first century. We could create hundreds of thousands of jobs in green energy in the next decade. Nuclear power can play no part in that because it takes far too long to build nuclear power stations compared with windfarms and other green measures. Wind energy sustains something like twelve times as many jobs per unit of power as nuclear does."

[Green Mail] Video - The Green Party on Expenses

[Green Mail] Speaker should go says top Green

Darren Johnson, Green Party member of the London Assembly, has joined the growing calls for the Speaker of the House of the Commons, Michael Martin, to go.

"Michael Martin's handling of the whole expenses issue has been a disgrace. London Assembly members would never in a million years be allowed to get away with the sort of expenses abuse that many MPs have been involved in. But Michael Martin's whole approach has been to sweep the issue under the carpet and attacks anyone who questions him. He has let down the Commons. He has let down the people of Britain. He has let down the democratic process and he should go. We need a Speaker who can promote transparency and accountability, not thwart it."

As Chair of the London Assembly, Darren Johnson carries out a number of similar functions as the Speaker plays in parliament.

"Can't blame people for losing faith in politics, " says top Green

Darren Johnson, chair of the London Assembly, today spoke out on the expenses row that has rocked British politics.

He said: "The MPs' expenses debacle has really undermined the public's faith in the political process and in politicians. And I can't say I blame people for losing faith. As a councillor and London Assembly Member I have always been used to operating under ultra-strict rules about what we can and can't claim for. So I'm utterly appalled at what many MPs have been allowed to get away with.

"With elections to the European Parliament coming up on June 4th I am sure many people are wondering whether it's worth bothering to vote at all. But that worries me. If the turnout is really low it makes it easier for the BNP to win a seat. So to decent people who cannot bear the thought of voting Labour, Conservative or Lib-Dem this time, I urge them to think about voting Green. Not only will this help elect more Green Party MEPs, it is also a positive vote for the future. As we said in our election broadcast - if you don't want things to continue as they are, if you think fairness, integrity and the environment belong in politics then think about voting Green."

The Green Party launched its Euro-election campaign this week with a manifesto designed to create a million UK jobs, slash carbon emissions, protect and improve public services and improve quality of life.

Green Party: London Assembly elects new Chair

Darren Johnson, a Green Councillor in the London Assembly since 2000, was elected today as the Chair for the next year at the London Assembly, with Jennette Arnold taking over the role of Deputy Chair.

Darren Johnson said:

"I am honoured to have been chosen by my colleagues to lead the Assembly in the year ahead and delighted to have this additional opportunity to serve Londoners. I believe the next twelve months will be a crucial time for the future of our city as we seek to pull out of recession and alleviate its impact on individual Londoners. Assembly Members will vigorously make the case for London to receive its fair share of resources from central government during these tough times."

"The coming year will also see the Mayor set out his detailed plans for the future development of London with a number of key strategies being published and refined, including transport, housing, economic development, planning and climate change mitigation and adaptation. The Assembly will continue to work to have a positive impact on the development of these strategies, identifying areas for improvement and monitoring the effectiveness and efficiency of their implementation."

Darren was elected to the London Assembly in May 2000. He was the first Green member on Lewisham Council and is now leader of the Council's six-strong Green Group. Darren has led investigations into a range of topics including the government's proposal for Heathrow expansion, plastic bags, loss of street trees and front gardens. He has also promoted measures to address low pay in the Capital and policies to protect vital local services.

Boris Johnson’s first year – Green AM speaks out

As Boris Johnson approaches his first anniversary as London Mayor on 2nd May, Green Assembly Member, Darren Johnson AM, reflects on the Mayor's first year in office.

Darren said, "Although there have been one or two bright spots such as scrapping Ken Livingstone's six-lane road bridge and planting more trees, Boris Johnson's overall performance has been deeply depressing. We have seen wave after wave of green initiatives being scrapped, cancelled or cut including the £25 charge for gas guzzlers, new tram schemes and the London Cycle Network."

Johnson mayoralty - positives

* Thames Gateway six-lane road bridge abandoned, although crossing at Silvertown proposed
* Heathrow expansion opposed, although Thames Estuary airport proposed and expansion at City Airport supported
* Cycle hire and Superhighways have funding, although nothing yet for suburban cycle hubs
* Support for urban agriculture, allotments, and treeplanting
* Continued support for London Living Wage and Fair Trade initiative
* Mayor adopts Assembly proposal to commission work on amnesty for irregular migrants
* Continue green retro-fit programme for commercial buildings
* Major plans for street by street approach to home insulation
* Package of measures on knife crime includes some positive youth initiatives.

Johnson mayoralty - negatives

* Failure to provide leadership over police mishandling of G20 protests
* London Cycle Network (LCN+) funding cut by two thirds & no promise of completion
* £25 emissions charge for gas guzzlers and Western Extension of congestion charge zone dropped
* Low Emissions Zone will now not be expanded to 90,000 light goods vehicles in 2010
* Court action being prepared by European Union on failure to meet air quality targets
* Abandoned 100 public spaces program: Parliament Square improvement scheme; Victoria Embankment; three year study into changing one-way systems back to two-way systems
* Planning for new transport schemes abandoned: Cross River Tram; DLR extension Dagenham Dock; Croydon Tramlink, Oxford Street tram; large number of step free access tube schemes
* Three year freeze on bus expansion program
* Planned purchase of 70 hydrogen vehicles has been reduced to a trial of 10 hydrogen buses, although ambitious plans for electric vehicles announced
* Environment budget reduced by £139k
* Proposals to cut 114 posts at City Hall, may have impact on the London Mayor's ability to carry out his statutory duties, especially in relation to the environment
* Mishandled Damien Green affair

[Green Mail] G20 outcome "a kick in the teeth for British industry and global sustainability, " says top Green

Surveying the outcomes of this week's G20 summit, one of Britain's leading Green politicians today called the summit's outcomes a "kick in the teeth for British industry and global sustainability."

Darren Johnson AM, Green Party spokesperson on trade and industry, said:

"British industry needs a shot in the arm, but it's been given a kick in the teeth.

"Gordon Brown's approach, in Britain and globally, has been a huge missed opportunity. In Britain he's pushing for jobs-poor, environmentally dubious technology in the form of so-called 'clean coal,' and equally jobs-poor but dangerous technology in the form of nuclear. And on the world stage he's managed to pull off a global stimulus that includes less than seven per cent climate-friendly investment." (1)

Mr Johnson, a London Assembly member since 2000 and the Green Party's parliamentary candidate for Lewisham Deptford, continued:

"Britain's over-reliance on financial services has been a spectacular failure. It's time we re-built the real economy. There are a raft of emerging technologies waiting for government investment to kick-start the Green industrial revolution that will give us the economy of the future - a balanced economy that includes heavy industry and self-reliance on energy. We have a golden opportunity to beat the recession and the climate crisis in one - and we're wasting it."

**UK carbon boost exceeds climate-friendly stimulus**

Darren Johnson's comments reflected those of the broader progressive movement. Glen Tarman, chair of the Put People First coalition of trade unions and NGOs, said yesterday that while the G20 had made progress on some critical issues, there were also "missed opportunities, especially on building a green economy" (2).

Friends of the Earth's executive director Andy Atkins accused G20 leaders of "short-changing the planet" (3).

Meanwhile Kim Cartensen, director of WWF's Global Climate Initiative, was telling journalists at the UN climate talks in Bonn: "Unfortunately, the packages reveal inadequate incentives for greener technologies or any pronounced move away from high-carbon investment." A joint study by WWF and E3G found that for the UK, the amount of carbon-intensive stimulus has actually exceeded the amount devoted to climate protecting measures (4).

And Achim Steiner, executive director of the UN Environment Programme, said: "I'm afraid some of the European stimulus packages are still relatively vague on the criteria that would create a green new deal dimension" (5).

**G20 "has put back chances of stopping runaway warming"**

In today's _Independent on Sunday_, widely-respected environment editor Geoffrey Lean said: "It was meant, in Gordon Brown's words, to strike 'a global green new deal' to tackle climate change and pull the world out of recession at the same time. In fact, the G20 meeting has sharply put back the chance of an international pact to stop global warming running out of control" (6).

Darren Johnson concluded: "Every time we see evidence of progress we also see evidence that governments are dragging their feet. They don't seem to understand that the policies we need for tackling climate change will bring huge social and economic benefits.

"We need more Greens in elected office, because we need to push parliaments and assemblies and local councils towards a better understanding and a better set of policies."

All London homes to be offered free insulation and energy advice

Consistent campaigning for energy efficiency has at last been followed by action in the nation's capital.

The London Development Agency has proposed to offer free energy saving measures to every London home and Green Party member of the London Assembly Darren Johnson said today he was pleased that his consistent questioning and raising of the issue has paid off.

The announcement follows a major investigation by the London Assembly's Environment Committee, which chaired by Darren Johnson, which flagged up the success of a free insulation scheme in Huddersfield which is already delivering lower bills, reduced CO2 emissions and new jobs.

The new London scheme represents a major u-turn by the LDA who were previously planning to abandon home insulation work altogether. The scheme will offer:

* "Ten easy measures" free to all London households (3m total). These measures include: hot water tank insulation, draught proofing, radiator panels, low energy lightbulbs, standby switches etc. The anticipated take up is 1.3m homes and this should generate CO2 savings of 1.4m tonnes per annum.
* Installation of more major measures in 800,000 homes (including loft and cavity wall insulation, heating controls upgrade etc) yielding a further 720,000 tonnes of CO2 per annum. It is unclear at this stage whether this will also be free. The average cash saving to householders taking part in the scheme is estimated at £230 per annum.
* The scheme will be delivered via a street by street, door knocking approach as in Huddersfield.
Initial analysis and comparison with schemes outside London suggests that 2,200 additional jobs will be created as a result of the scheme and a major training programme is likely to be needed to ensure the availability of skilled labour from year (1).

Darren Johnson AM said today:

"Ever since the home energy saving scheme introduced by Ken Livingstone was set for cancellation by the new administration, I have been pushing Mayor Boris Johnson to turn his vague promises to help Londoners insulate their homes into a comprehensive and substantial programme. The new LDA proposals do just that.

"I am pleased that my proposal for a free London-wide scheme to cut fuel bills and save energy has been taken up. It is disappointing that progress was so delayed by wranglings between the LDA and the Mayor over who will pay. However, we now have the foundations of an excellent scheme and I will be pushing to ensure that both cavity wall insulation and loft insulation are also offered free of charge in order to maximise the benefits."

Mr Johnson, who is also the Green Party's national spokesperson on trade and industry, concluded that he would like to see the whole of the UK pursue the best possible programme of domestic energy-saving measures.

Party leader Caroline Lucas MEP will say in her speech to the party conference tomorrow (Friday 20 March) that a nationwide programme along these lines would generate almost 140,000 UK jobs.