Worcester Action Day - Greens Jobs Pledged, Free Insulation Call

17 January 2009

An ‘day of action' hit Worcester High Street on Saturday to campaign for green jobs for the city as part of the Green Party's vision of investing in technologies of the future to dig Worcester and the West Midlands out of recession.

The Green Party launched the Worcester leg of its campaign for the 2009 European elections on 17 January with a pledge to create thousands of new green-collar jobs in new green industries in Worcester and the West Midlands. Euro-MP Candidates joined Worcester Parliamentary Candidate Louis Stephen and County Council candidates to speak to passers-by about the proposals on offer.

As part of the plans, Worcester Green Party have been running a petition in recent weeks to ask the City Council to explore the possibility of supplying free insulation to city homes, just as is in Kirklees, Yorkshire, and create jobs for local people.

The UK has more than 40% of Europe's wind resources and, off our shores, marine energy from waves and tides could generate up to 20% of our electricity. The Green Party claims that, like Germany, we should already have created more than 250,000 jobs in renewable energy. However, our failure to develop this industry means we are lagging behind, with only 26,000 green energy jobs at most. Investment in this industry would require manufacturers and green-collar workers to support a whole new industry. Greens believe that Worcestershire and the West Midlands, with its manufacturing heritage, have all the skilled workers needed to staff this new industry.

Green Party Euro-MP Candidate Felicity Norman commented "The Worcester Bosch group, famous for energy efficient heating, is proof that investment in green technologies can create jobs at a time of recession. But there is more than can be done, with a little help from Government. If elected to the European Parliament in June this year, I will do my utmost to give green technologies a boost and help create thousands of new jobs in the new industries that are so essential to tackle the economic downturn and the climate and energy crises".

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