Parliamentary Candidates on Local Issues
Sarah Edwards - Green Party candidate
Regeneration of Town Centre and South Acton Estate
The Green Party believes that plans for the regeneration of Acton’s town centre and the South Acton Estate must put residents’ needs at their heart. At the meetings to discuss the future development of Acton, I have pressed for better planning for local services and infrastructure, and challenged the proposals for high numbers of new flats for sale. We must ensure there are enough health services, school places, public transport links and recreational facilities and stop the loss of green spaces. Our housing policies would ensure more empty homes are brought into use and give priority to providing affordable rented homes.
We are committed to ensuring that future developments respect Acton’s heritage and will seek to restore the old buildings and use empty properties. Our policies would strongly support the local, small businesses in Acton.
NHS Services (are our A&E departments under threat?)
Protecting the NHS is one of the main Green Party manifesto priorities. We will fight for a fair deal for all those needing health care by opposing cuts and privatisation and by demanding locally accessible services for both physical and mental health. We oppose Labour’s private funding arrangements, which are causing huge debts in the NHS.
I have campaigned to protect Ealing Hospital’s A and E Department, maternity and children’s services from cuts and will continue to do so.
We also believe strongly in tackling the causes of ill-health, such as the awful air pollution in Acton. Our transport policies would make a big difference to this. We would also provide people with the resources they need to live healthy lives, regardless of their income. For example, we are committed to free, healthy school meals for all and more physical activities for children.
Policing in Acton
The Green Party believes that Acton’s residents should be able to live free of both crime and the fear of crime and we believe that more positive steps should be taken to make Acton a safer place to live. The Green Party’s is committed to crime prevention, increased community policing under local democratic control and more local police stations.
The Green Party’s policies would reduce crime and make residents feel safer. It is not just about formal policing. For example, we would reinstate the park rangers’ posts that the Conservatives cut. Our policies on helping people addicted to drugs would cut Acton’s high level of drug related crime. We are also committed to doubling expenditure on local authority youth services, as we believe that better services for young people will have a direct impact on youth crime.
May 2, 2010
