City deals revealed as directionless

Wed 15 Jan, 2020

City Region deals in Scotland lack direction and should be realigned behind efforts to lower emissions, the Scottish Greens have said.

Responding to the Audit Scotland report which shows the high-profile funding packages have no way of measuring success, Scottish Greens co-leader Patrick Harvie said: “While it would be hard to spend £5.2bn without some kind of positive impact, this troubling report reveals just how opaque and directionless George Osborne’s City Deals have turned out in Scotland.

Scotland denied a say on our future

Tue 14 Jan, 2020

Responding to the Prime Minister’s letter to the First Minister, refusing to transfer the necessary powers to hold an independence referendum, Scottish Greens Co-Leader Patrick Harvie MSP said:

XR call to divest pension funds welcomed by Greens

Tue 14 Jan, 2020

Calls to divest the Scottish Parliament’s pension funds from fossil fuels have been welcomed by the Scottish Greens.

The demand from Extinction Rebellion on the parliament’s investment partner Baillie Gifford, which invests in oil giant Shell, comes after it emerged almost half of universities in the UK have committed to cutting ties with fossil fuel firms.

Commenting, Scottish Green co-leader Patrick Harvie said: “It’s important to lead by example, which is why MSPs of all colours have been calling for an end to unethical investments of our pension funds.

Scottish Greens respond to budget timetable

Mon 13 Jan, 2020

Responding to reports that the Scottish Government has set out a timetable for its budget, Scottish Greens Co-Leader Patrick Harvie MSP said:

Scottish Greens issue climate budget warning to Derek Mackay

Mon 6 Jan, 2020

Finance secretary Derek Mackay must produce a climate emergency budget if it is to win support of the Scottish Greens, the party has said.

In a letter to the finance secretary, Scottish Greens co-leader Patrick Harvie warned that support of the Greens would depend on commitments to decisive action to lower Scotland’s emissions.

Greens ready to win independence

Tue 17 Dec, 2019

Responding to a statement from the First Minister in parliament this afternoon, Scottish Greens Co-Leader Patrick Harvie MSP said: 

“The Scottish Greens are more than ready to campaign again for Scotland’s future to be decided by the people who live here, and for independence to be the path that we choose. We are ready for that campaign to begin, and we’re ready to win that campaign. 

Nicola Sturgeon challenged over just transition claims

Fri 6 Dec, 2019

The Scottish Greens have challenged First Minister Nicola Sturgeon over claims she made that the just transition from oil and gas is underway.

Sturgeon has made the claims during TV debates in the general election campaign [1], and this was raised by Scottish Greens co-leader Patrick Harvie at First Minister’s Questions.

Scottish Greens pledge to defend diversity

Fri 6 Dec, 2019

Equalities legislation is under threat from Brexit and rising intolerance, the Scottish Greens have warned.

As well as surging hate crime in the UK following the Brexit vote, there have been calls to repeal the Equality Act 2010 and the Human Rights Act of 1998 from right wing groups across the UK.

The Scottish Greens are the only party to have all candidates pledge to protect LGBTI equality and human rights [1], and the party’s Women’s Network has launched a pledge of solidarity [2].

Scottish Green manifesto to transform economy launched

Tue 26 Nov, 2019

Taking action to tackle the climate emergency and build a fairer and more sustainable economy is central to the Scottish Green manifesto.

The document builds on the recent Scottish Green New Deal publications, which show the radical action needed to limit carbon emissions while protecting jobs and building a sustainable future.

Tax on polluting SUVs would protect public health and planet

Thu 21 Nov, 2019

Heavily polluting cars such as ‘sport utility vehicles’(SUVs) should be taxed more to stem the growth in air pollution, according to the Scottish Greens.

The party proposes to double the first-year vehicle excise duty (VED) on all vehicles producing over 111g of CO2 per kilometre.

This would mean a new Land Rover Range Rover Evoque would be taxed £1,060 in the first year instead of £530.