I love London but I believe it can be even better.
I want it to be the world’s greenest city: a diverse, healthy, fair and prosperous place. A city that shares its success with every citizen.
All of that is possible – but it needs political will, and a team with Green vision and Green values in City Hall.
I’m standing for London Mayor because I think I’m the person to lead that team.
My election to Islington Council in 2014, in a breakthrough ward, was by just eight votes. I know very well that every vote counts. Greens must appeal to Londoners across our city with a positive vision that includes voters who have voted for other parties in the past.
Habitual Labour, Lib Dem and Tory voters contributed to my eight vote margin. If we are going to get a Green mayor for London we need to inspire voters of all backgrounds and previous political persuasions that Green Party leadership can make London a better City.
Since my election as a councillor in May 2014, I’ve held the only opposition seat to Labour’s 47 seats across Islington.
I’m a transport campaigner and the Green Party’s National spokesperson on Local Transport.
I’ve lived in London for thirty years and in that time I’ve been an artist and college lecturer, a cycle courier, a civil engineering student, a school governor, community activist and I’ve raised a family.
As a walking and cycling campaigner, I played a key role in setting Islington on the path to becoming a 20mph borough and I’ve represented the national walking charity Living Streets and more recently Roadpeace on Transport for London’s Junction Review Board.
I have campaigned for years to raise awareness about the unacceptable toll of death and injury on our streets and the dire public health crisis due to the polluted air we breathe each day.
As a councillor, my primary focus is serving the people in my ward and working with residents, community groups and Green Party activists to keep the town hall accountable, support public services and work for a sustainable economy and environment in Islington.
I’ve seen first hand the challenges that so many Londoners in my ward and borough are facing, not least in coping with inadequate housing, insecure employment and environmental conditions that simply shouldn’t be acceptable in a fair society.
As Mayor, I will set out a vision of a London where shared economic prosperity goes hand in hand with a Green revolution that radically improves:
- the homes we live in
- the streets we use and
- the air we breathe
These priorities demand serious innovation – but London is the most innovative City in the world.
As Mayor of London I would create the conditions where London can respond to the challenges we face: delivering a transformation in housing, cleaner air and safer, greener less traffic dominated streets. We have the chance to build a city at the forefront of a worldwide revolution in green technology and social innovation, and all Londoners would benefit.
I believe that with a strong organisation and the right values, anything is possible.
The 2016 London Assembly Elections are a chance for our city to really shine: to support all Londoners and to lead the way as it has in the past.
Because leading the way today means more than simply boasting about ever-increasing GDP. There’s so much more to life than that, as the million people who voted for the Green Party in the General Election understand.
If London is to be a great city in the future, it must be great in terms of the things that really matter to Londoners – the homes we live in, the streets we use and the air we breathe. These are things the Mayor can influence. London’s Mayor must be the servant of the people of London, not the representative of special interests.
Politics is about possibility. It’s about making things happen. If we decide we want London to be the greenest and the greatest city in the world, we can make it so. That’s why I’m putting myself forward to become the Green Party’s Mayoral candidate for 2016 and no 1 on the list for the London Assembly.
Caroline Russell is campaigning to become the Green party’s 2016 candidate for Mayor of London. Follow her campaign at caroline-russell.london and on Twitter: @highburyonfoot
