GPW Leadership responses

1. Domestic Violence: 3 1. 3 1. Sian Berry & 3 1. Rosi Sexton 4 1. Andrea Carey Fuller 4 1. 4

2. Rape: 6 2. Shahrar Ali 6 2. Sian Berry & Jonathan Bartley 6 2. Rosi Sexton 6 2. Andrea Carey Fuller 7 2. Amelia Womack 7

3. Triple whammy: 8 3. Shahrar Ali 8 3. Sian Berry & Jonathan Bartley 8 3. Rosi Sexton 9 3. Andrea Carey Fuller 9 3. Amelia Womack 10

4. Domestic workers: 11 4. Shahrar Ali 11 4. Sian Berry & Jonathan Bartley 11 4. Rosi Sexton 11 4. Andrea Carey Fuller 12 4. Amelia Womack 12

5. Pensions: 13 5. Shahrar Ali 13 5. Sian Berry & Jonathan Bartley 13 5. Rosi Sexton 13 5. Andrea Carey Fuller 13 5. Amelia Womack 14

2020-08-03_GPW Leadership responses Page 1 of 20 6. Political discourse: 15 6. Shahrar Ali 15 6. Sian Berry & Jonathan Bartley 15 6. Rosi Sexton 15 6. Andrea Carey Fuller 16 6. Amelia Womack 16

7. Party Governance & Leadership: 17 7. Shahrar Ali 17 7. Sian Berry & Jonathan Bartley 17 7. Rosi Sexton 17 7. Andrea Carey Fuller 17 7. Amelia Womack 18

8. Literature Inspiration: 19 8. Shahrar Ali 19 8. Sian Berry & Jonathan Bartley 19 8. Rosi Sexton 19 8. Andrea Carey Fuller 19 8. Amelia Womack 19

Individual responses to questions are presented in alphabetical order; leadership candidates (surname first) Shahrar Ali, Sian Berry & Jonathan Bartley, Rosi Sexton, followed by deputy leadership candidates (surname first) Andrea Carey Fuller, Amelia Womack.

2020-08-03_GPW Leadership responses Page 2 of 20 1. Domestic Violence:

In September 2019, domestic murders reached a very worrying 5 year high. The pandemic has made the situation even worse. During the first month after the lockdown began in late March, sixteen women and girls were killed in suspected domestic homicides — more than triple the number from the same period in 2019. At least 10 more have died in the two months since then. What should the government do to tackle male violence against women?

1. Shahrar Ali The first step in tackling this epidemic of domestic violence against women is to ensure that the provision is there to ensure women and their children can access services to escape violent relationships. Council funding for women’s refuges has been hit by around £8M in cuts over the past decade. This must immediately be reversed and funded sustainably. Women must be supported in breaking free from cycles of abuse and that means the ability to access permanent safe housing to rebuild their lives.

1. Sian Berry & Jonathan Bartley The levels of domestic violence and murders are totally unacceptable and have received far too little priority compared with other forms of violence in terms of enforcement, prevention and wider support services. Even worse, in recent times squeezed police resources have been diverted from violence against women into street violence against young people in particular, and Sian has seen for herself in her work on the Assembly the huge caseloads officers, detectives and victim support teams have had to face. On top of this, refuges and support services have been squeezed by austerity cuts, which have particularly affected dedicated services for women from different cultural and religious groups, which evidence shows can prove disastrous for disclosure and support-seeking if services are merged into centralised generic provision. Lockdown appears to have resulted in both a rise in domestic violence, including against young people and other family members, and a reduction in people seeking help, and everyone involved in this work is expecting that as restrictions are relaxed there will be a big rise in survivors and victims seeking to escape. This is an emerging crisis that needs planning for and questions asked by every Green in elected positions and, in the wider party, we can be allies in showing our support for the many organisations who are highlighting the need for more funding for support services, housing options and justice. In the longer term, campaigns arguing for more resources to be put into prevention and support have had some success in the establishment of Violence Reduction Units in many areas, including in London where violence against women and domestic violence is a clear focus of the new VRU’s strategy, and where there is also a dedicated Victim’s Commissioner who comes from a background working in women’s support services. Every one of these units needs more support and more funding from Government and Police and Crime Commissioners to be effective, and so that more independent services to break this cycle of neglect can be commissioned and given long-term security in their work.

2020-08-03_GPW Leadership responses Page 3 of 20

1. Rosi Sexton Domestic abuse is an issue that I'm passionate about. The thought of so many women being trapped at home with an abuser during lockdown was really worrying, and it's something that I've been working hard to raise as a council priority. I've been following the progress of the (long overdue) Domestic Abuse Bill, and although it promises some improvement on the current situation, there are still some large gaps in the provision. In particular, there are still no measures to protect migrant women who have "no recourse to public funds". The bill could also go further to protect women in the workplace, and in family courts (there is real concern that the family court process can be used by abusers to continue controlling and abusing their victim). The government also needs to do more to ensure that victims of domestic abuse are financially able to leave their abuser, and that those who are marginalised (for example migrants or sex workers) are able to seek help without fear.

1. Andrea Carey Fuller I fully support the actions set out in the Woman's Place UK Manifesto: i) Recognise prostitution as sexually abusive exploitation which is harmful to all women and girls. ii) Implement the abolitionist model, criminalising those who exploit prostituted people (including pimps and sex buyers) and decriminalising the prostituted, providing practical and psychological exiting support. iii) Ratify the Istanbul Convention. (The Council of Europe Convention on preventing and ​ combating violence against women and domestic violence) iv) Sustainable investment from national government, proportionate to demand, to tackle violence against women and girls (VAWG), including single-sex support services, and specialist independent services run by and for women, BME women, migrant women, disabled women, lesbians, and services tackling FGM and other harmful practices. v) Highlight and tackle the harms of pornography including the exploitation of women in its production and the hostile culture it creates for all women and girls in society. vi) Legislate to protect women and girls from the impact of porn culture on their lives, including clear penalties for image-based sexual abuse. End ‘No Recourse to Public Funds’ for abused migrant women; extend the Domestic Violence Rule and the Destitution and Domestic Violence Concession.

1. Amelia Womack As a domestic violence survivor, I am passionate about ending violence against women. I have worked to make misogyny a hate crime using petitioning and lobbying as well as working cross party to get the policy on the agenda in parliament. This policy will help ensure misogynistic behaviour is addressed by law before a woman experiences violence.

2020-08-03_GPW Leadership responses Page 4 of 20 Austerity has stripped away much local support for survivors, so I have also worked cross party to demand increased council funding for local refuges and support, and been a committed anti-austerity campaigner as as well as co-chair of the People’s Assembly.

2020-08-03_GPW Leadership responses Page 5 of 20 2. Rape:

Recent research has shown that rape prosecution rates are extremely low, with The Victims Commissioner for England and - Vera Baird recently pointing to a “catastrophic” decline in rape prosecutions, and warning that we are facing ‘the decriminalisation of rape’. This would also lead to more rapes, due to men feeling they can act with impunity. The facts: roughly 80,000 women are raped every year in this country. The number of prosecutions was less than 5% and has now fallen by 50%. How can the effective decriminilisation of rape (1.4% convicton rate) be reversed?

2. Shahrar Ali Logging misogyny as a hate crime will help the CPS build profiles of repeat offenders and better be able to map escalating offending profiles and take action on the basis of aggravation and build cases on merit. Women are doubly victimised under a system struggling under decades of cuts where police referrals to the CPS have dropped by 23%. Offenders are emboldened with every not guilty verdict and victims are left with the physical and psychological scars of these abhorrent crimes feeling they, not their attackers, have been put on trial. We have to turn that culture around.

2. Sian Berry & Jonathan Bartley Confidence in the police and criminal justice system over rape and sexual violence is at a catastrophic low. Compounding the same squeeze on resources and support services as we have seen in domestic violence, criminal justice in this area has suffered huge setbacks resulting from mishandled cases and struggles over the use and collection of digital evidence. With privacy campaigners, we have stood against the use of ‘digital strip searches’ that leave survivors of rape facing unconcionable intrusion into every aspect of their private lives by police and defence teams, and prosecutors have become incredibly cautious about proceeding in cases such that the phrase “decriminalisation of rape” is an appropriate description of the current situation. Now that new guidance to bring more proportion to evidence collection is coming through, we should see an improvement in technical terms, but the damage to people’s confidence to report rape and seek justice will take much longer to fix. Working with allies in organisations that support victims, women in the should campaign for the police and CPS to commit to a superlative level of work to fix this, in addition to making sure that victims’ statutory support and wider support services are boosted with the resources to create a massive step change in proactive and practical support.

2. Rosi Sexton A significant part of the problem lies with the massive challenges caused by the under-funding of the police and criminal justice system. This results in having too few resources available to investigate many crimes thoroughly, long waits before trial (which prolong a victim's ordeal, and can put women off pursuing justice), and conviction targets which can lead to more complex

2020-08-03_GPW Leadership responses Page 6 of 20 cases being dropped. Reversing this under-funding and the backlogs and flaws within the system must be a priority. We also need to look at how victims are treated and the support given during the process of pursuing a conviction.

2. Andrea Carey Fuller - More dedicated resources to prevent rape. - More exposure on this issue through the media to highlight this issue and to talk about the life-long effects of rape. - Continued support for single-sex spaces for women to feel safe and protected - Longer minimum prison sentences for rape as a deterrent - currently anything from 4-19 years - could set the minimum at 10 years - More female judges and training for male judges/barristers and solicitors about the sex-based rights of women - A more supportive process for victims of rape to get advocacy support to report their crime/take their case to court - A dedicated police line for rape/sexual assault/domestic violence cases which has a dedicated team to follow up on each case and to support the victim through the CPS process.

Also see attached two documents which need to taken up by policy committee within central Government: 1. Strategic Direction for sexual assault and abuse services. Lifelong Care for Victims and Survivors 2018-2023 2. Overview of the Worldwide best practices for rape prevention assisting women victims of rape.

2. Amelia Womack Rape is the only crime where the victim becomes the accused. This is unacceptable. I have spokan against this in the media on several occasions as it’s totally unjustifiable that such a small percentage of women who experience rape and come forward find justice. As a result, women are less motivated to report their experiences. We need to address a culture where women are not believed.

We need better investment in rape crisis centers to support women with the full range of support that women need after being raped, as well as provide better support to those reporting rape.

2020-08-03_GPW Leadership responses Page 7 of 20 3. Triple whammy:

Women in the UK are more materially impacted due to Brexit, austerity, and the pandemic. This has had an impact on their work and career situation, economic situation, opportunities, caring responsibilities, access to justice and education, health care access and provision and much more. This is especially pronounced for women of colour, migrant women, disabled women and working class women. What direct actions would you take as leader/deputy leader to highlight the impact of these crises and improve outcomes for women?

3. Shahrar Ali I will lend my support to women-led campaigns specifically aimed at not simply defending the existing welfare state, but also encourage our regional and local parties to make the fight for a Universal Basic Income one of their top priorities. As for the likely loss of women’s employment rights acquired under EU regulations, I would encourage members to take an active role in campaigns organised by the trade union movement to defend those rights. I will give my full support to the lobby for free child care for all which I believe is a fundamental right of all parents.

3. Sian Berry & Jonathan Bartley Institutional discrimination against women happens at every level of society, from the data chosen for collection to the structure of our housing and welfare systems, and in parallel with work to expose and fix Black and minority ethnic discrimination and disproportion, these structural inequalities need to be exposed and eliminated. In London Sian has highlighted, for example, the fact that the Living Rent is calculated according to median incomes, ignoring the gender pay gap and the different sizes and types of households where women are the wage earners, which means that these so-called ‘affordable’ rents will be by definition unaffordable to a large proportion of women. Despite raising this with the Mayor for more than two years, no adjustments have been made, and this is not good enough. Sian has also worked through the Assembly in London to expose the disproportionate impact of short prison sentences on women’s lives and was able to bring the views of the organisation Women in Prison and the idea of not sending women to prison at all except for serious crimes to national attention in the Good Morning Britain studio. There are so many other areas you have highlighted where women are structurally disadvantaged and harmed, and so face worse impacts when crises hit. We need more Green women in the room where decisions are made and able to work as allies to amplify the voices of those drawing attention to these problems. This is one of our strategic goals for the party in our platform for the next two years: to build a wider mass movement where groups like Green Party Women, elected Greens, and more campaigning work coordinated through head office are part of making change happen now.

2020-08-03_GPW Leadership responses Page 8 of 20 3. Rosi Sexton Inequality - whether related to social class, gender, race, disability or any other factors - is something that I'm passionate about, and talk about regularly in my role as Health and Adult Social Care spokesperson on Solihull council. It's important to understand the connections between all these different factors (and how they magnify each other). I often talk about the disproportionate impact that policies and events have on different groups, and I have been able to raise the profile of this issue in our council. Being able to talk convincingly about these issues in interviews and with the media is vital, as is being fluent with the data and evidence in order to be able to dispel common myths and effectively challenge the misleading assertions that often come up when this issue is discussed. We should also be working with advocacy and campaigning organisations to highlight these issues, and identifying specifically how our vision and policies will improve the circumstances of women in challenging situations.

3. Andrea Carey Fuller - For women who are working in the home care sector, I have been working with Green Party women to enable the 'rolling out' of Unison's Ethical Care Charter throughout Councils (via our elected Green (and especially where we have Green women) councillors) which raises up both the minimum level of care received by older/disabled women in their homes and just as importantly, supports a better standard of living, and better working pay for women providing the Home Care as they receive pay for the time.

-Bring back Living Fund for disabled people to enable them to purchase extra support and care in their own homes.

-Ensure that all carers who are registered carers or who are employed in the social care sector (Home Carers as well as those working in Registered Nursing or Care Homes) have a 'fast track' access to supermarkets when the second wave of Covid-19 hits.

-Bring back the bursary for nurses and provide housing allowances to support women in nursing, and social care sectors. -Support the NHS Reinstatement Bill - to reverse the privatisation of the Health Service and bring it back as a fully funded National Health Service and listen to the NHS workers - from Consultants - Nurses to cleaning staff/porters etc as to what the service needs to be able to provide excellent care whilst ensuring the good health and safety of all its workers - especially with regard to high standard PPE stocks, and higher numbers of recruited staff to cope with crises.

-Support a Universal Basic Income to ensure that everyone has a decent standard of living.

- Use the findings of the Cross Party Parliamentary Group into COVID-19 to improve the lives of all those disproportionately affected due to ethnicity, loss of employment, low-income, ill-health, caring responsibilities etc.

2020-08-03_GPW Leadership responses Page 9 of 20 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jul/12/cross-party-mps-to-lead-independent-uk-cor onavirus-inquiry

- I don't know if it is being done already but it would be good if Black Lives Matter were given resources to set up an enquiry as to the devastating impact Covid-19 has had on BAME groups (an enquiry led by BAME people for BAME people) See: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-52894225 as a starting point. ​ ​

3. Amelia Womack I have demanded a gender analysis of Covid19 impacts, by lobbying politicians across parties, to expose failure of governments to support women. We must fight for a genuine Green New Deal which ensures we stay below 1.5 degrees of warming and addresses inequality. We must tackle the ecological emergency while recognising the roles often overwhelmingly held by women, such as care, and give career opportunities in roles in green industries to women. We need to loudly oppose any austerity agenda, and support a Universal Basic Income that will help liberate so many women from structural inequality.

2020-08-03_GPW Leadership responses Page 10 of 20 4. Domestic workers:

80% of worldwide domestic employees are women and many of whom are on irregular or informal contracts, have been severely affected by the pandemic. Despite being “at the ​ frontlines” of COVID-19, they are rarely part of COVID-19 response plans. This is especially ​ pronounced for women of colour, migrant women, disabled women and working class women. How can we make sure their situation/rights/needs are taken into account?

4. Shahrar Ali Decades-long health inequalities impacting the poorest and migrant population of this country must be overcome and the spotlight of Black Lives Matter campaigns should be used to push for institutional transformation. I would demand immediate publication of the full report of the causes of the disproportionate number of people of colour left exposed to contamination and death in the NHS and residential care homes. I would lend my support to those who wish to see that all the recommendations from that report be fully implemented.

4. Sian Berry & Jonathan Bartley Early in the crisis we were both vocal in calling out the huge problems that would occur if any support scheme for workers was run by employers, and calling for a universal basic income approach to be taken instead. We could already see the disproportionate impact on women, BAME and young people if more casual or small-scale employers did not take part. Jonathan has for a long time been working on the problems faced by precarious workers in the gig economy and their lack of representation by unions, and has worked on a number of campaigns with the IWGB union which is trying to fix this. The problem is even more acute in sectors like domestic and care work where women dominate.

At the end of June, as part of a project led by Jonathan to work with campaigners and NGOs to amplify their demands and produce a set of solutions to the crisis that leaves no-one behind or destitute, we published Whatever it Takes, and this way of working is something we want to see at all levels of the party to make sure those who are slipping through gaps get our support. You can read the demands here: https://medium.com/@TheGreenParty/whatever-it-takes-60091678a239

4. Rosi Sexton The lack of employment rights and access to full sick pay for many workers in insecure employment has really been highlighted by the COVID-19 crisis, and this is certainly true for domestic workers. As Greens, we're of course campaigning for a Universal Basic Income, which would be a significant step to better security for these workers. Until that becomes a reality, we should be pushing for better statutory sick pay that means workers are not disadvantaged or having to worry about paying their bills if they have to take time off when sick.

2020-08-03_GPW Leadership responses Page 11 of 20 With the Test and Trace programmes in operation, we must push for people to be appropriately compensated if they are asked to isolate because they've been in contact with someone with COVID.

4. Andrea Carey Fuller - By working in collaboration with Unions that represent them e.g. Unison, GMB etc and organisations they have set up to support themselves like: https://www.thevoiceofdomesticworkers.com/

4. Amelia Womack Women have been disproportionately affected by moves towards zero hours contracts and other casual arrangements in industries where salaries were already too low and workers are undervalued. We must fight to ensure that women - especially women of colour, migrant women, disabled women and working class women - have union representation, fair pay, decent contracts, employment rights and opportunities for career progression. We also need to end the current situation where women are underrepresented on boards.

2020-08-03_GPW Leadership responses Page 12 of 20 5. Pensions:

In 2018, women in the EU aged over 65 received a pension that was on average 30% lower than that of men. Women already had smaller pensions – but now lockdown has hit women’s pensions hard, as their pensions have shrunk on average 17.5 percent compared to just 5.7 percent for men during the pandemic. This is a serious inequality that has been turbocharged by the pandemic. How would you work to build alliances to highlight and tackle this and do you support the WASPI Women?

5. Shahrar Ali I will engage directly with the organisers of the WASPI women who are fighting for justice for the 6.4% of women between the ages of 60 to 62 who have lost up to £32 a week due to insufficient notice to changes in the State Pension Age. I will do all I can to support their call and campaign for a transitional state pension arrangement and compensation for loss of income.

5. Sian Berry & Jonathan Bartley We give our full support for the WASPI women and Jonathan has met with the campaigners and backed their campaign in the media and in lobbying for change. This generation of women face multiple threats and it can often be forgotten that not every person who grew up in the 50s and 60s is a wealthy retiree, with women disproportionately among those trying to live on low incomes in this age bracket. Sian has worked in London to highlight the plight of older renters, supporting Age UK in this work, as another example of the problems faced by this generation of women.

5. Rosi Sexton Yes; I think it's unjust that many women have had their pension age pushed back with little notice. They are now suffering a second time for the inequalities that existed in the workplace during their working life. The pandemic has certainly made things worse, and it seems likely that the economic challenges the country is now facing will only compound this further. I think has been doing some excellent work on this particular issue, and I'd certainly want the national party to support that work, and to look for specific policies we can push for to ease the burden on those struggling.

5. Andrea Carey Fuller - I support the Women Against State Pension Inequality campaign for economic justice and equal rights.

2020-08-03_GPW Leadership responses Page 13 of 20 - It would be better to set a good standard State pension rate across the board which ensures that no pensioner lives in poverty - look to best practice with those countries that are said to have the best pensions in the World - Netherlands, Denmark and Australia: https://www.iamexpat.nl/expat-info/dutch-expat-news/netherlands-pension-system-yet-again- best-world

So I would campaign with AGE UK to get the State Pension uplifted - the current State pension works out at only just over £9K per year yet to live comfortably a single pensioner needs double that to nearly £20k per year and a couple would need about £30K per year.

Age UK provide great support and information about pensions and obtaining pension rights: https://www.ageuk.org.uk/information-advice/money-legal/pensions/state-pension/new-state- pension/

5. Amelia Womack I am proud to have marched with WASPI women several times. I have talked with women who have had a lifetime of promises broken. I ensured that our last General Election manifesto pushed for UBI to be given to WASPI women first, as it was a clear way to tackle the change in state pension in a rapid way relevant to Green Party policy. We need to continue to fight for the rights of women to receive the pensions that they were promised and to end the unfairness of the current system which results in women receiving smaller pensions.

2020-08-03_GPW Leadership responses Page 14 of 20 6. Political discourse:

Are ‘the left’ becoming more authoritarian? Using techniques such as ‘no platforming’, ‘no debate’, ‘cancel culture’, demonetizing/de-funding and employment/contract termination. Has the left has become more intolerant over the past few years, and do these techniques improve political discourse?

6. Shahrar Ali Unfortunately, authoritarianism has afflicted movements across the political spectrum and, yes, that includes traditionally left politics. I have seen thresholds for tolerating engagement with political opponents substantially lowered and I regard that as deeply problematic for liberal democracy – which thrives on contesting and challenging ideas through free speech. The mantra ‘not up for debate’ is particularly damaging for politics and encourages dangerous groupthink – in which environment, falsehood and distortion thrive because of such limited exposure to challenge. In our own party, I have seen women debarred from organising fringe events at conference on the most questionable of pretexts.

6. Sian Berry & Jonathan Bartley It is an important part of our values as a party to do politics differently and to promote consensual ways of debating and to avoid abuse. This was the theme of our first speech as co-leaders to conference and we have acted to remind members of our principles in this respect a number of times since, alongside our deputy. Social media has done a lot to connect the world better and to highlight injustice, and can be a force for good, so it has been distressing in recent years to see a serious souring of the discourse on these platforms, and wave after wave of intolerance, misinformation and abuse directed at minorities in coordinated campaigns, of which the Brexit debates, islamophobic and racist abuse aimed at politicians, transphobia, and rank misogyny are just some examples with many intersectional issues meaning that some people online face being exposed to incredibly high levels of hostility. It is our job as Greens to be better than this, especially in how we relate to each other. Action must be taken when people cross lines, and we are working to improve the resources, speed, efficiency, consistency of our dispute resolution and disciplinary processes so that members know both that abuse will see action and that there are ways to resolve differences outside the heat of social media platforms.

6. Rosi Sexton I don't think this is a particular issue with either "the left" or "the right". I think that political discussion in general has become more polarised in recent years, for a number of reasons. In particular, I think the rise of social media has caused a lot of challenges, and has emboldened a minority to use increasingly abusive language and engage in a way calculated to cause distress. This can become amplified when large numbers of people pick up on the initial message. One consequence of this (amongst other factors) is that debate around sensitive

2020-08-03_GPW Leadership responses Page 15 of 20 topics can become unmanageable. Complex issues are reduced to soundbites and nuance can be lost.

I don't think there's an easy answer to what we do to improve the situation. As a species, we are still figuring out how to use digital communication to our best advantage; it is still very early days, and we're going through some teething troubles. Whilst discussion is important, I also feel strongly that nobody should be put in a position where they are forced to defend their right to be who they are.

I think it is right that topics that centre around the identity of particular marginalised groups are handled sensitively. We need to find ways to do this that respect the needs of all our members.

6. Andrea Carey Fuller -There is too much 'group-think' going on which effectively stops people from investigating and researching information for themselves - because of the wave of pressure put out by group-think onto social media. We have seen this in relation to one aspect of activism within Trans Rights whereby standing up for women's sex-based rights is automatically 'dubbed' as being transphobic or TERF, yet women's sex-based rights stand alongside other people's rights (and some of these sex-based rights will also support Trans Women - in relation to objectification, misogyny (where a trans woman passes for a woman) etc

- There is a right to free speech and open debate in the UK and people also have a right Under Art 9 of the HRA to freedom of 'thought and conscience' - we should always be open to dialogue and Women standing up for women's rights should be able to meet and discuss women's sex-based discrimination issues without fear of violence against them or demonstration against them.

6. Amelia Womack We must protect free political discourse but no-one should be allowed to be given a platform that undermines the rights of others or a group of people. It’s vital that we are clear and consistent in our opposition as Greens to racism, misogyny, anti-semitism, homophobia, abelism, transphobia and xenophobia.

I have spoken out on several occasions over the years about misogynistic language used in the media, and have complained to IPSO. When hurtful language is used on these kinds of platforms it enables it in society and must be called out if we want to build progressive and accepting communities.

2020-08-03_GPW Leadership responses Page 16 of 20 7. Party Governance & Leadership:

Given the high turnover of GPRC/GPEx roles, there are concerns some party members are standing for high-level positions with poor grasp of role expectations and often stand down. Some roles wield more power with less accountability which was addressed in the holistic review, however it’s implementation has been consistently delayed. Will the holistic review do what we need it to do for the green Party or will it entrench more power in a handful of roles?

7. Shahrar Ali Certainly improvements can be made. I generally support the Conference Voting Reform Working Group proposals for Delegate or Representative conferences, such that it becomes easier for all local parties to send delegates who will represent their views, as discussed and agreed at local meetings. However, whatever our constitutional provisions, there will always be the possibility of corruption. I want to see a renewal in this Party of good faith debate and unity around the most important issue of the day, the climate emergency.

7. Sian Berry & Jonathan Bartley The Holistic Review reforms and plans for incorporation make a number of important changes, not least taking away the implied burden of role-based GPEx roles and creating a governance based Political Executive instead, along with the creation of a new Council, which we really hope will create more ways for people to be involved in the running of the party in clearer, more flexible, family-friend and more influential ways. There will be dedicated posts on council for liberation groups including Green Party Women, and a number of non-portfolio roles in GPEx and Council for election by members, for which we hope Green Party Women will aim to select candidates to campaign for to give you a stronger voice. The next steps for creating the new constitution are through motions to Autumn Conference to hold a special conference on the constitution at the start of 2021, at which any amendments to the draft detailed constitution based on the HR proposals that you can think of to improve the gender balance and accessibility of roles like these would be incredibly welcome.

7. Rosi Sexton I think the holistic review will be helpful in moving the party forward, and would like to see it implemented.

7. Andrea Carey Fuller Everyone needs to be represented on the new Green Party Council (merging of GPEX and GPRC to 45 'seats')

2020-08-03_GPW Leadership responses Page 17 of 20 I support the proposal of 2 seats per region = 18 seats in total and 2 seats for Wales which takes the number to 20 seats.

However, in my view the other 25 seats in my view should be shared out as follows: Elected Councillors should be allocated 10 seats instead of the proposed 5 - with at least 6 out ​ ​ of 10 for women Councillors - and at least 3 of these to be Greens of Colour

I do not agree with the heavy weighting giving too much power to Young Greens - instead of the proposed 5 seats I would allocate them 2 seats (Members @6K) ​ ​ ​

Green Party Women should also be allocated 2 seats (Members @7K) ​ ​ Green Seniors should also be allocated 2 seats (Members @3.K) ​ ​ ​ Greens for Animal Protection - should also be allocated 2 seats (Members @5.K) ​ ​ ​ LGBTIQA+ should also be allocated 2 seats (Members @3.K) ​ ​ ​ ​ Greens of colour - 1 seat (in addition to reserved 3 on elected councillors) TU Group - 1 seat - (and at least another 2 representatives as union members - e.g. elected councillors) NB: This Group are not currently represented on action network Jewish Greens - 1 seat Green Left - 1 seat - currently not on action network - not recorded on civi Green Party Disability Group - 1 seat

7. Amelia Womack As one of the longest serving GPEx members, I believe it’s important we address the high turnover so we can develop an institutional memory and benefit from experience gained within the party. I have recently worked with the CEO on how we need better training and support for all GPex and GPRC members as well as those on other committees so that there’s a clear understanding of expectations in the role, a clear process on how to deliver in it as well as ensuring we are giving people the tools to do the jobs e.g. training in reading accounts.

2020-08-03_GPW Leadership responses Page 18 of 20 8. Literature Inspiration:

GPW are about to launch their Book Club (20:00, last Wednesday every month). Our first book is by the Barrister and Eco-activist , Polly Higgins "Dare to be Great". Which book should be next on the GPW reading list and why?

8. Shahrar Ali Silent Spring by Rachel Carson. This is a book which I use for teaching environmental ethics and it’s a great example of a deep green approach to nature, in which species have value in themselves not just in regard to our uses or abuses. Carson is brilliant at calling out devastating farming practices which, apparently, nobody has explicitly consented to as they wreak havoc on our meadows.

8. Sian Berry & Jonathan Bartley Sian is a huge fan of the ability of speculative fiction to illustrate issues around human rights and bring new perspectives to the position of women in society, stemming from discovering Margaret Atwood’s Handmaid’s Tale at a young age. For fictional choices we’d therefore suggest both the Testaments from Margaret Atwood and a novel called The Power by Naomi Alderman, who benefited from Atwood’s mentoring in developing her ideas for the book.

8. Rosi Sexton The Spirit Level, by Kate Pickett and Richard G Wilkinson. A clear and compelling overview of the impact that inequality has on society, and how it harms everyone - even those at the top.

8. Andrea Carey Fuller Why I'm no longer talking to White people about Race - Reni Eddo-Lodge - we need to explore the links between structural racism and feminism to support BAME Green Party Women to lead on Women of colour's issues within our GPW agenda.

The Well Gardened Mind - Rediscovering Nature in the Modern World - Sue Stuart-Smith - How gardens can put us back in touch with the 'fundamental aspects of life.'

8. Amelia Womack Dare to be Great is on my reading list too as my early political background is in campaigning to end ecocide and when I met Polly Higgins she was one of the most inspiring people that I have had the pleasure to speak to.

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I really enjoyed “Why Women Will Save the Planet”, which is a collection of essays on feminism and the environment. There’s even a chapter by Caroline Lucas.

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