News from the Scottish Party • Autumn 2010 20 Graham Street, Edinburgh EH6 5QR • 08700 772 207 [email protected] • www.scottishgreens.org.uk ISSN 2044-7949 (Print) • ISSN 2044-7957 (Online) 100% Renewable In Brief... Holyrood 2011 Elaine 2 Morrison asks 100% Doable what’s not to like about the Green platform, and Recent debates on Scotland’s energy future show 100% renewable, perhaps even before 2020. our first round of 1960s thinking blocking massive benefits we could be All the additional power we generate beyond announcements experiencing right now. our own needs could then be exported to our of candidates for In September Holyrood held a debate on energy neighbours in the UK and beyond. That’s the 2011. future. As we expected, this showed up a vision we need for a low-carbon economy, not straightforward divide between those who want the SNP’s tinkering at the edges.” News action and those who simply want to talk around But on the day, in practice, the Labour MSPs the issue while pursuing “damage as usual”. backed a Conservative amendment supporting An active Almost ten years ago, Scottish Ministers new nuclear power, a move which would be 4 century of Leslie Spoor; global published a report showing Scotland’s capacity costly, dangerous, unsustainable and unpopular, campaign news. for renewables was at least 59·1GW, almost six but this amendment was rejected. MSPs rejected times the country’s electricity usage, and more a Green amendment which set out several basic recent figures suggest the potential is far higher, policy changes essential if we are to move to a Roots & Branches perhaps up to 160GW of offshore wind alone. low carbon economy. What I wrote in advance of the debate: These votes are a clear guide to the various 5 are up to “There’s much more to the idea of a low parties’ attitudes to energy, climate change and round the country. carbon economy than simply switching to the economy. Fortunately most Scots will see renewables, vital as that is. Every aspect of their unprincipled role in office, past or present, the economy must be truly sustainable, from for what it is. Views & Reviews transport and housing to manufacturing and Nuclear power is dead in the water in Community banking. Scotland has for too long relied on the Scotland, and the public are dead set against 6 Regeneration, declining oil and gas industry and on the whims it too. The more worrying outcome today was the Piper project of international inward investment. It’s time the decision by every other party to reject our and the carbon Ministers started properly supporting Scottish proposals to move towards a comprehensively footprint of innovation and the kind of local businesses that low carbon economy. They voted for more road bananas (and more won’t just move abroad when the exchange rate capacity and yet more growth in aviation, for or less anything changes. It’s also time they abandoned their new coal and against additional investment in else). transport and industrial policies, ideas which renewables, and they failed to back our call for would have been outdated in the 1960s. investment in local low carbon economies. “Clean energy will be crucial, but Scottish Holyrood has a consensus on the science and UK Governments have spent too long – most Tories don’t even claim climate change talking about that potential instead of making isn’t real anymore. But the other parties have it a reality. It’s time to change the approach also agreed on inaction and drift. They seem to altogether and set a date for turning Scotland think that talk is enough. Greens will continue to reject that apathetic consensus. Scotland deserves better.

 Holyrood 2011 A Socially and Ecologically Just Vision for Scotland A personal perspective from Elaine Morrison of the Argyll and Bute Greens. As the Holyrood election peeks at us and economic security, not a life based from around the corner we are facing upon never ending consumption as a the prospect of yet another electoral means of lifting us out of recession. squeeze. How do we ensure that the We say that it’s okay to turn on your Scottish maintains its heating or go on holiday abroad but presence, builds upon it and delivers it should be done within the limits of more representation than ever before a personal carbon budget. How you at next year’s elections? I would argue use your allowance is up to you, but that a clear positioning there are only so many carbon of our social and We are the emissions to go round. No more environmental justice party of choice overdrafts for this planet. agenda should be for all those We say that core public at the heart of our who care about services should be controlled organic and affordable. Local, organic campaign and our equality and by the public, not delivered for food promotes health, supports local subsequent actions. sustainability. profit. We want to re-nationalise business, creates jobs, cuts carbon The following is a the railways, provide affordable emissions and is really tasty. What’s snapshot of where our strengths lie housing through the public sector not to like? and how we can ensure that we are and cooperatives, keep the post And that is just it – what’s not to the party of choice for all those who office in public hands and invest in like? We have to think about how we care about equality and sustainability. social enterprise. I would go further can make living within our means an There is no getting away from the and suggest energy companies but attractive option and one that only a fact that we need to live within our that (note to self) is for a conference vote for the Scottish Green Party will means – ecologically and financially motion sometime. deliver. We must play to our strengths – to ensure that there is enough to go We push for localisation of food but also be savvy enough to know round. This can be a positive message, production and for redirecting that the other parties one that offers an alternative to agricultural subsidies towards We offer an will try to steal our blaming individuals for their personal organic farming. We support alternative clothes. We must stay debt, for climate change and for losing penalising the supermarkets for to blaming ahead of the game to their jobs. waste production, encouraging individuals for deliver a vision and We are different from other parties allotments to make local food their personal actions for a socially because we promote a steady state available in urban and more debt, for climate and ecologically just economy with an emphasis on quality marginalised communities, and change and for Scotland. More focus, of life, in the form of health, happiness, changing procurement rules so losing their jobs. more positivity, more community, environmental quality that school dinners can be local, votes! Editorial Hello and welcome to We also have Gavin the Autumn 2010 issue of Corbett on Leslie Spoor’s Greenprint. As we all gear hundredth birthday and up for next year’s elections Fabio Villani on land this issue is full of the reform, along with lots of campaigns our members news from Greens around are working on and some the world and around the great Green ideas. country. Patrick Harvie This is my first issue as The ’ National Council met in Stirling in September. introduces our Holyrood editor and I owe a debt of candidates while Elaine gratitude to Rosemary and Correction Morrison looks at the Niall for building up such strength of our core a vital publication. I hope In the Summer issue of Greenprint we said that Ian policies and asks, what’s I can continue supporting Baxter, our candidate for Midlothian, received 0·9% not to like? I couldn’t members in turning of the vote in the Westminster elections. Ian in fact agree more. Scotland a vibrant Green. received 1·5% of the vote. Varihi Scott



Holyrood Candidates “It’s clear what a difference just “Scotland has for too long In early September we announced two Green MSPs have made relied on the declining oil our party’s top candidates, to Scotland, from securing and gas industry and on across six of the eight regions, for Climate Challenge Fund the whims of international next May’s Holyrood elections. money for 261 community- inward investment. It’s time Patrick Harvie MSP is here with the led projects across Scotland Ministers started properly introductions: to clamping down on hate supporting Scottish I am proud to stand alongside crimes and helping abolish innovation and the kind of tuition fees. I would love the local businesses that won’t an excellent crop of Green opportunity to help with this just move abroad when the candidates across Scotland work as Central Scotland’s first exchange rate changes.” – candidates with experience in Green MSP.” Patrick Harvie Parliament, in local government Kirsten Robb and as community activists on a a wide range of issues. The 2011 election will be an important moment, where Scots can vote for a positive agenda of social justice and safeguarding the environment instead of the failed centre-right agenda of the rest. Every other political party at Holyrood supported that agenda – growth obsessed, free market dominated and environmentally reckless – while predicted their failure. Now a vicious programme of public service cuts is proposed as b the solution. The alternative is to cut the vanity projects and protect the vital services; to realise the opportunities of a low-waste, low- energy, low-carbon economy; and to put quality of life ahead of the “Across the region the recession is biting and selfish values of the right which have dominated our politics for far the cost of living is rising. too long. We have the opportunity to re-draw Scotland’s political The other parties have landscape next year. I urge everyone who wants to see that happen settled for bickering and to get involved with the Greens and help make it a reality. c shallow point-scoring. The Our Candidates positive Green alternative is economic policy driven Kirsten Robb Central by the needs of local people Emma Stewart (a) and local business.” Patrick Harvie MSP Glasgow Cllr Martha Wardrop (b) Eleanor Scott d Highlands & Islands Donnie MacLeod (c) Cllr Lothians “Lothian made history over Cllr Steve Burgess (d) ten years ago by electing Mid Scotland & Fife as the UK’s Hilary Charles (e) first Green parliamentarian. Cllr Martin Ford Robin has worked hard for North East Rhonda Reekie (f) e local people and my colleague Steve Burgess and I share his high hopes for the future. “The Forth Road Bridge is our “No-one currently represents The Lothians have elected region’s connection to the the thousands of North-East two Green MSPs before, and I rest of Scotland. Rather than residents who want to see believe we can do so again.” repair it, the other parties want priority given to investing in Alison Johnstone to condemn commuters to a education, instead of expensive decade of congestion while and ineffective road building. f draining money from health, The North-East needs a strong education and public transport Green voice in Holyrood, budgets to pay for a new bridge. someone local people can Only a strong Green voice for trust and who will put the Mid Scotland and Fife will help community’s interest before avoid this bleak prospect.” unsustainable profiteering.” Mark Ruskell Martin Ford

 News SGP Founder Reaches Century Biggest Offshore Wind Farm The Greens alone have a sense of urgency about the future of the planet, says Scotland’s The UK’s new biggest offshore wind longest serving political activist. Gavin Corbett spoke to Leslie Spoor for Greenprint. farm has opened – and it’s not in One of the principle movers behind late Foreign Secretary and Livingston Scotland, but off the shore of Kent. the Scottish Green Party celebrates MP, Robin Cook. He was already three Nor were the turbines built by an his hundredth birthday on 12th of years into his retirement when the increasingly strong UK renewable October. Party member Leslie Spoor Scottish was formed. He energy engineering sector, but by the was the main instigator of the then also organised the party’s first general Swedish company Vatenfall. Scottish Ecology Party, as part of the election campaign in Scotland in 1979. We welcome this development Ecology Party UK in 1978. (The party More than 30 years later, Mr and note that there’s more than changed its name to the Green Party Spoor still maintains a keen interest enough capacity from the old energy in 1985 and the Scottish Green Party in politics and current affairs and sector to be taken up – so long as we became a separate political party in until the last four or five years find the political will to address the 1990.) was a regularly-hailed figure at infrastructure questions that have Leslie bears the honour of being Edinburgh branch meetings and party been holding developments like this dubbed Scotland’s longest serving conferences. back in the past. political activist. Although very much Leslie told Greenprint: “In a long With the installed wind power an Edinburgh man, he and active life I have capacity in the UK now over 5 spent time in London when you have such seen political fashions GigaWatts we are at least on the way in his earlier years a wide perspective, come and go, and when to meeting some Government targets and was active in the you realise that what you have such a wide for renewable energy – if the rate of 1936 Cable Street riots, matters is long-term perspective, you realise installation keeps apace. Still short of when communities in vision that what matters is where we need to get. London’s East End took long-term vision. I action against Oswald Mosley’s British continue to back the Greens because Climate Catastrophe Union of Fascists. Seventy-four years they alone have a sense of urgency All Around Us later, he was featured in the Edinburgh about the future of the planet.” This summer thousands of people Evening News delivering leaflets All Scottish Green Party members lost their lives and countless more for Robin Harper’s campaign for the will surely congratulate Leslie on have lost their families, homes Westminster seat of Edinburgh East. reaching another landmark in a and livelihoods in climate change A Labour Party member for many distinguished life. disasters. Massive mud slides in China, years, Leslie was a close friend of the unprecedented flooding in Pakistan and fires still burning in Russia and Australia Greens Greenpeace and Kazakhstan are just some of the Cairn Energy examples cited by Johann Hari in an In August the Australia Greens won article in The Independent headed the balance of power in the Senate. On August 31st, Greenpeace activists ‘How much proof do the global This outstanding victory included occupied Cairn Energy’s Stena Don rig warming deniers need?’ winning a Senate seat in every state in Baffin Bay. Under a banner stating and winning their first seat in the ‘Hands off the Arctic, go beyond oil!’ lower house at a general election. the protesters called for a ban on deep Greens Online Adam Bandt took the lower house seat sea oil drilling in the Arctic. for Melbourne with a massive 13% Better Nation is a new political swing on primaries. Norwich Greens blog from Scottish political On the 9th of September Norwich bloggers James Mackenzie, Jeff Camp for Climate Action Greens took the ward of Thorpe Breslin and Malcolm Harvey: As the Australian votes were being Hamlet from the Liberal Democrats, http://www.betternation.org counted, Camp for Climate Action increasing their number of seats on Stirling and Clackmannanshire 2010 was getting ready for its day the city council to 14. Greens have joined twitter as: @ of action against the Royal Bank of stirlinggreens Scotland and the fossil fuel industry. Anti-Coal Occupation at Three activists glued themselves to Happendon Wood Highlands and Islands Greens the door of an RBS branch so that they As we go to press, forty people are have joined Facebook: http:// could tell every customer about where occupying Happendon Wood, to limit www.facebook.com/pages/ RBS invests their money. coal expansion in the Douglas Valley, Highlands-and-Islands-Green- South Lanarkshire. Party/141129265907143

 Roots & Branches Aberdeen Better by a Country Mile on Land Reform We are holding internal elections for those who wish to Moray Greens convenor, stand in the 2012 local council elections. We’re maintaining Fabio Villani, learns a nice our focus on Tripping up Trump, our Union Terrace Gardens lesson in giving an audience campaign and upcoming council cuts. Clive Kempe what it wants. represented us at the CND Hiroshima anniversary and I was a panelist at June’s managed to get a mention in the press. In September we’ll Development Trusts have our AGM and will elect new branch officers. Association Scotland Rhonda Reekie conference, talking land Midlothian reform and asset transfer to communities with Midlothian Greens are kicking-off their action plan for representatives from the the 2012 elections with a social event for members and SNP, Conservatives and supporters in mid-October. They are also planning to look Liberal Democrats. closely at Midlothian Council to identify where savings can The Trusts share our view that land reform must be made to protect services we feel are most important. be reviewed and improved and that asset transfer to Ian Baxter communities should be facilitated and supported. Highlands and Islands In my own experience of community land initiatives I’ve found serious shortcomings in current legislation. We are opposing development of A96 corridor, promoting Lack of public money is often raised as a constraint in green proposals and a proper consultation process for these issues. However, this perceived lack is the result of the Highland-Wide Development Plan and challenging policy choices, such as cutting public services rather than public spending cuts. We are also fighting plans to sell increasing tax revenue through a more redistributive tax off common good land in Forres and promoting the system. Our policy choices are different: we believe in establishing of all new residential developments, and empowering communities ideally existing ones too, as Home Zones. In August, Argyll through devolving decision Lack of public money is and Bute became a sub-branch and Shetland held its first making and power to the the result of policy choices. official Green Party meeting. lowest possible level. Our policy choices are Myra Carus The event was my first different. South Lanarkshire experience as a panellist and afterwards I asked our chair, Lesley Riddoch, how I Some of our members are participating in a massive anti- could improve. She said that my strength was knowledge incinerator campaign in Stonehouse (20,000 objections of the detail and that I should not be afraid to use it. I got and counting!). Our help to the Dovesdale Incinerator similar feedback from members of the audience. campaign has focussed on research and organising. You Other parties often resort to generalities when it comes can find more information about the campaign at www. to serious green issues; we don’t have to and our audiences dovesdaleincinerator.info. We’ve started fundraising for don’t want us to either. the elections and have held our first community stall of the campaign. Patrick Harvie joined us and did his bit of legwork at Clydesdale’s Energy Efficiency Project’s world “The Forres area deserves a record cycling attempt – a great community day councillor willing to stand up for where we gave out hundreds of Green windmills. the interests and values of the Our Holyrood candidates for Central Region have “While our schools, local community. This includes met up – we’re all looking forward to working libraries and museums ensuring that local assets, such as common good land and the together. face the threat of Tolbooth, are kept in public Kirsten Robb permanent closure, Highland Council ownership and managed for the Perth spends £25 million, benefit of the community, rather per year, on processing than sold off for the benefit of The Perth branch is working with Fife and Stirling unwanted packaging. property developers. It also branches towards the election of Mark Ruskell for Supermarket profits are includes ensuring that budget the Mid Scotland and Fife seat. In the first week on the rise and of every savings are secured by running of September we launched our first Perthshire pound we spend in our public services more efficiently, Green Drinks, which we hope will bring in new local supermarkets, rather than by cutting services members and friends. I’m always delighted to 80 pence leaves the to the most vulnerable people in hear from members and would encourage them Highlands.” our society.” to keep in touch as we get our campaigns rolling. Myra Carus Fabio Villani Hilary Charles

 Views A Cultural Shift in Regeneration Edinburgh Community Project Under Threat As recession bites, supporting Mike Ferrigan, project consultant for PIPER talks to Greenprint: community regeneration is more important than ever and Without all the hard work and dedication of Green Party the active involvement of local members and Robin Harper and Patrick Harvie’s hard residents will be vital. Andy negotiating skills, PIPER would not exist. PIPER works Milne, head of SURF, Scotland’s with schools, homes and the wider community on climate independent regeneration change and sustainability initiatives. network, reports on growing We currently work in three Edinburgh communities with calls to put the focus on people a cost effective model that could be applied to every school instead of property. in Scotland. Our six Parent Councils work in partnership After decades of under investment and marginalisation, with existing local organisations such as community community and voluntary organisations are being shoved councils, churches and local authorities. centre stage in dramatic efforts to sustain and reinvent As acting moderator of the Climate Challenge Fund community regeneration. It’s a tough role to fulfill in the Coalition, I am concerned that the funding for PIPER and all most hostile of economic theatres. 260 Climate Challenge Funded community projects across Regeneration policy makers now publicly acknowledge the length and breadth of Scotland will end in March 2011. that the previous model of funding community If you are involved in a Climate Challenge Funded regeneration on constantly increasing property values, is project, the newly formed CCF Coalition can be found here: broken. The fallout of disastrously unregulated greed and http://groups.google.com/group/climate-challenge-fund- gambling (a horror show that is still running) will not only coalition Seventy eight projects have already signed up. slash public sector resources, it will massively increase Please join and help us campaign for a Climate Challenge poverty levels and related service demands. Fund 2. For more information you can contact me on Peter Head OBE, one of Time magazine’s top 30 global [email protected] or phone 0131 449 3966. Many eco heroes, shared some inspiring solutions to address thanks. these challenges when he spoke at the Royal Town sustainable regeneration Planning Institute in June. must be rooted in the The truth is we can fertile soil of authentic achieve both community local identity, skills and regeneration and aspirations sustainable growth if we plan properly towards an emerging ecological age. A central component is retrofitting existing buildings and cityscapes to provide a practical and exciting future for urban living. However, this is not about a return to speculative property development; sustainable regeneration must be rooted in the fertile soil of authentic local identity, skills and aspirations. This positive, people based approach is often called cultural planning and SURF and others have been advocating it for years. Peter showed examples from China and Africa, as well as England, arguing that this approach could provide a sustainable renaissance of Scottish towns and cities. Cultural planning is alive and well in Scotland: city-wide in Dundee and localised in places like Govan, Granton, Neilston and Prestonpans. At SURF’s annual conference, senior civil servants called for more communities to bring forward creative solutions – a good sign that a real cultural shift is in progress. SURF has organised a special conference on ‘Creative Approaches to real regeneration’ to highlight the success and potential of this real people based approach. It will take place in the excellent community owned Pearce Institute in Govan, Glasgow on 10-11-10. For more details see the SURF web site at www.scotregen.co.uk or email me at: [email protected] Images on this page courtesy of SURF and Piper.  Juan Alberto Ramírez Díaz Ramírez Alberto Juan Review How Bad are Bananas? The Carbon Footprint of Everything Mike Berners-Lee Profile Books £8.99 240pp. As it happens, bananas are pretty good. Especially if you eat them to power your bike. Asparagus from Peru is exceptionally bad, but I think most of us knew that anyway. Mike Berners-Lee has written the ultimate guide to assessing how much carbon is generated by almost everything we eat, drink or do. The average person in the UK has a carbon footprint of around 15 tonnes. The Malawians emit less, the Australians and North Americans more. A minute’s mobile phone Mike is trying to persuade chat comes in at 57g, each of us to adopt a 10 about the same as an tonne lifestyle but paying apple, most of a banana or attention to our carbon a very large gulp of beer. footprint. Many of the entries will not be news to readers of Greenprint. We know that flying to Hong Kong and back Obituary: Murray Falconer is bad – 3·4 tonnes CO2e for an economy seat or 13·5 tonnes CO2e first class (because your seat takes up more Murray Falconer died on 9th June in Falkirk following a of the aircraft). But some others were more surprising. long battle with cancer. We will remember him for his For example, he calculates that the carbon footprint of a determined campaigning, his laugh and that hat. red rose is zero picked in the garden, 350g CO2e grown Murray was convenor of the Scottish Green Party in the in Kenya and flown in by air, and 2·1kg grown in a heated mid-1990’s and, for several years, our Transport speaker and greenhouse in the Netherlands. Running a dishwasher co-convenor of Highlands and Islands Green Party with his twice a week on the economy setting works out better than wife Gale. Murray and Gale joined the party in 1989 at the handwashing with copious hot water. A minute’s mobile start of the Euro-election and carried on campaigning from phone chat comes in at 57g, about the same as an apple, there, contesting local authority, Holyrood list and general most of a banana or a very large gulp of beer. election campaigns. I would quarrel with some of his assertions, such as “He was always a fighter for a cause and ethical. He equating the carbon footprint of farmed fish with fish was always tirelessly trying to win this seat in Drakies,” caught at sea. Surely farmed fish are fed with fish caught at Gale commented. When he stood for parliament in the sea, plus the energy used by the cages and service boats, old Inverness, Nairn and Lochaber constituency, he was, to say nothing of the commensurate problems of release of typically, the only candidate to bother to visit the Isle of farmed fish into the wild and the proliferation of diseases Eigg (dressed all in green, of course). and pollution from their doses of antibiotics. He asserts Murray, aged just 55, was brought up in Falkirk. He that shipping is better than flying, but shipping has very served his time as a pit electrician and ended his career high sulphur emissions due to the lower restrictions on as a lecturer at Inverness College before ill health forced the type of fuel shipping can use and this has significant early retirement. He was as proud of his National Union of negative environmental effects. Mineworkers background as he was of Falkirk Football Club. However, if you are serious about lowering your carbon I will remember his good sense of humour, his laugh footprint, this is the guide for you. It’s written in an – which once stopped a play (‘Hitler killed my canary’) – approachable, even humorous style and, as he says, if it and the dash he cut negotiating Inverness roundabouts persuades one person to think carefully about the impact wearing his deer-stalker as a cycling helmet. of their purchases or travel choices, then it will have been Our sympathies are extended to Gale, his daughter worth the carbon costs of printing and distribution. Susan and the rest of Murray’s family. Rosemary Burnett David Jardine

 Greenprint welcomes submissions on any Scotland’s Greenhouse topic, but reserves the right to edit or reject submissions. The deadline for first Gas Emissions submissions (which can include outlines) for the next edition is 13 December 2010. The mailing date will be around All the changes you’ve made 17 January 2011 (subject to events). around your home and that Waste Greenprint is available from our website you’ve demanded from public Management or by email, or on paper from Party bodies have brought down our Branches (black & white). country’s greenhouse gases from Large Format paper versions are 9 million tonnes to 8·6 million 4·6% available on request. tonnes of greenhouse Contact gases, since 1990. [email protected] or phone 08700 772 207.

Agriculture 12·6% Advertise in Greenprint Greenprint goes out to around 1,200 Scottish Green Party members and to the public Business & Industrial 12·7% in both print and electronic (colour) formats. Residential & Public Contact 14·2% [email protected] or phone 08700 772 207 Transport for details of pricing. 23·8%

The Scottish Green Party is Energy affiliated with other Green Supply Parties in the UK, Europe and around the World. Currently 32·1% we have two MSPs and To keep eight Councillors elected in driving down the Scotland, with more joining us other 47·5 as the basic integrity of Green million tonnes politics becomes ever clearer. produced in Scotland, through energy supply, transport, business and agriculture, we need Green regional councillors, For more news about Green Party Green MSPs and Green MEPs. activities around Scotland, in Councils, at Holyrood, and on Figures are for 2008, which are the most recent greenhouse gas the Streets, visit: emissions figures given in our source: Key Scottish Environment www.scottishgreens.org.uk Statistics 2010, published by the Rural and Environment Research and Analysis Directorate of the Scottish Government. Full document Or subscribe to the SGP’s available at: News email list at: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/323958/0104272.pdf www.scottishgreens.org.uk/news

Greenprint is the Scottish Green Party’s quarterly journal, published in paper and electronic versions, by the Scottish Green Party, 20 Graham Street, Edinburgh EH6 5QR. This edition is edited by Varihi Scott ([email protected]). This edition’s paper version is printed on recycled paper by Big Sky Print Ltd., The Press Building, 305 The Park, Findhorn, Forres IV36 3TE. Views expressed in articles herein are not necessarily those of the Scottish Green Party or its members.