Why is a Green Party candidate standing for Elected Mayor of North Tyneside?
Because we want a Borough which is environmentally, economically and politically a good place for people to live in. We in North Tyneside Green Party want to create a society which meets people’s needs while protecting and enhancing the local environment for future generations, and helping us as a community to move away from our dependency upon oil, reduce carbon emissions and adapt to the impact of global warming.
What will this society be like? We would like to see more homes which are made out of sustainable materials and which are well insulated to reduce energy use; schools which are part of the local community which children and young people can walk to safe from traffic; local shops (including post offices), leisure and social activities, health and other services within walking or short bus ride distance; cheap and frequent public transport so people don’t have to use their cars; active citizens involved in shaping their communities; more ‘green’ jobs and businesses which contribute to an environmentally and economically viable future and other more sustainable ways of living.
We recognise that this cannot be achieved overnight. It will take time to change the system that exists at present and make it ‘greener’. So there will be a transitional state which we will need to pass through.
At first you will hardly notice any difference, but stick with it and at the end of my first term as Mayor you will see the first buds of a Green North Tyneside, the beginning of a positive and environmentally friendly future. We are in this for the long haul.
This “Manifesto for a Green Transition of North Tyneside” is the latest version of a set of ideas which have deep roots in the past. We are not the first to see the possibilities of living a good life in harmony with nature; but perhaps we are the first who can make it happen.

When elected as Mayor of North Tyneside I will be expected to appoint a cabinet. This cabinet will draw upon the experience, skills and creativity of people who wish to support me in implementing my vision for the new green society, irrespective of political views. My administration will encourage employees of North Tyneside Council to suggest ways of making the organisation and the ways in which they work more environmentally friendly.
As Mayor I will provide ‘green’ leadership in promoting environmentally friendly and sustainable policies within the other local statutory and voluntary agencies with which the council will work in partnership to maximise the health and wellbeing of local people.
My administration will use its substantial powers as purchaser of goods and services to promote environmentally friendly production, distribution and delivery methods amongst those organisations with which it will do business.
The Green administration in North Tyneside will seek to empower local communities to solve their own problems as much as is possible, the council taking the role of resource provider.

North Tyneside is made up of many different communities, reflecting the historical diversity of economic activity in the Borough including mining, fishing and shipbuilding. Recently the Borough has welcomed a small but growing number of people from overseas. Whatever our background we all have an interest in living in friendly communities in which we respect both each other and the environment around us. North Tyneside Council has an important role in providing support to communities and individuals to encourage this to happen
My administration will continue to work with the police to reduce anti-social behaviour, be it caused by alcohol, drugs or criminal intent.
In order to support communities to meet the needs of the people living within them, including parents and the very young and older people, my administration will establish a small community based workforce to provide information, training and other resources. In particular, because more of us are living to an ever greater age, we will encourage local communities to provide more opportunities for their older and frailer members to meet and enjoy life.
Today’s local government can seem remote. Through the support for local communities my administration will enable local voices to be heard so that people feel more empowered to have a say about the decisions which affect the area in which they live.

North Tyneside has a coastal community, a riverside community, an urban conurbation and a collection of villages. This diverse make-up provides us with all sorts of physical resources that need to be harnessed and cultivated, in ways that will make the most of them, without destroying them. However, it is the people of North Tyneside who are its greatest resource. They have countless abilities and interests that can be utilised in many different ways by the community as a whole, and many will, in turn, benefit from finding a more fulfilling role within their own environment, be it by giving advice on how to use an allotment or working on literacy programmes in local centres. Everyone who wants to has something to offer. My administration will be concerned with raising people’s expectations about what life has to offer and encouraging a diversity of opportunities through which everyone can explore their potential.
Some of the area in which local people have a great deal to contribute are in the provision of social, cultural and sporting activities. We would seek to support them in continuing and developing these activities as well as improve the council-run leisure facilities. We would also look at the transport options in order to make all facilities far more accessible throughout the Borough for the use of both residents and visitors.
There is a large amount of “scrap” land across the Borough which we would bring back into use either for sustainable housing projects, community facilities such as allotments or ecological sustainable industrial concerns which could include horticulture, fisheries and tourism.

The provision of accommodation of various kinds is a vital aspect of the administration. Everyone needs somewhere to live but with private housing now so expensive we need more housing to rent. My administration will increase the affordable housing stock and land will be made available for self-build.
It is important to make our housing as sustainable as possible both as a unit to live in and as something that will be passed on to another generation. Making the best use of existing buildings is the first order of concern and demolition and new build will be done only where it is necessary. Both renovated and new buildings will use the best available methods of sustainable construction and energy use.

It is not just class sizes that are a problem - it is school sizes as well. My administration would endeavour to have community based schools, primary and scondary, across the Borough of no more than 500 students in total, using on-line technology to link schools for the study of specialist subjects. School terms (and hence holidays) should be spread out evenly across the year.
Students of all ages will be encouraged to explore ways in which our society can become more sustainable, environmentally friendly and reduce our reliance on carbon-based energy.
Non-standard curricula will be encouraged within the community schools to provide for the needs of young people who find the present standard method of schooling inappropriate. In this way they can be given a good basis of learning in spite of their difficulties.
Our heritage is important because from our roots comes our future seed stock and in this Borough it is particularly rich. As such the establishment of a Museum of North Tyneside will be given immediate consideration.

There is no point in asking people to give up their cars if there isn’t a reasonable alternative in their place. We need better public transport with the bus and metro services being properly integrated. East-to-west public transport is quite reasonable in North Tyneside but the north-to-south routes need improving and we would consider a tram link through the Tyne Tunnel to South Shields. The availability and frequency of public transport should be constantly under review ensuring that community voices are heard in the planning of services.
As an initial action my administration would call for the removal of the toll gates on the Tyne Tunnel which are a major source of congestion, and hence, pollution. If revenue is still required to be collected then an optical system should be installed.
My administration would encourage the use of bicycles and people’s feet for moving around North Tyneside with the possible introduction of Bicycle Bank, and also encourage car sharing and park & ride schemes. We would clamp down on illegal parking on pedestrian footpaths.
There is evidence that traffic signs may cause more problems than they solve. Therefore a review of the possibility of removing some traffic signs and signals from the Borough’s roads will be investigated.

Work is an important part of our lives. Not only does it provide the means of living in our present society by earning wages but in many ways it defines us as people. It is therefore important that “Work” is as fulfilling and sustainable as is possible.
North Tyneside Council itself is one of the biggest employers in the Borough. My administration would make the Council an exemplar of good practice, not only in employment but also in environmentally sustainable practice.
My administration will encourage the development of new and existing companies that can provide long-term sustainable work, goods and services. We will aim to put North Tyneside at the cutting edge of modern, sustainable technology, as well as producing commodities for general consumption.
In these uncertain economic times unemployment is an unwelcome experience for many. My administration will provide support to those who seek to improve their skills or learn new ones through ensuring there are plenty of opportunities for further education, training and skills enhancement within the Borough. It will also ensure that information about income support is widely available for those who need it.

The Council Tax system for generating revenue for the Borough is unfair, unwieldy and we are stuck with it until central government changes it. We will campaign for a system of local income tax and a local levy on all business based upon their green credentials to raise income.
That said, please do not believe anyone who tells you that your Council Tax will go down by any significant margin while the services and resources it funds remain the same.
On establishing my administration in North Tyneside it will undertake a review of the funding and revenue to establish a sustainable system throughout the local government of North Tyneside, diverting money into the community resources where-ever possible.

You will have noticed that throughout this manifesto I have talked about a great deal more than just “the Environment”. The reason for this is that EVERYTHING relates to our environment – in fact even we are part of our environment and it, as are we, are constantly changing. Green Party Manifestos change too in order to adapt to current circumstances. We do not look at the world as something fixed, but as a dynamic, ever evolving entity; an entity that has many interwoven characteristics. It is the nature of Politics to try and separate the world into neat packages, but unless we have a holistic approach to the world we cannot hope to create and govern a society which can work with others to make a better world for us all.
The Green Party is leading to a holistic and caring future; the seeds of that future must be planted now, by you, by voting for me, Martin Collins, to be the next Elected Mayor of North Tyneside.