The senior elected representatives of the 3 Green Parties in the UK – the Green Party of England and Wales, the Scottish Green Party, and the Green Party of Northern Ireland – have all now confirmed that they won’t be crossing picket lines during today’s strike.

With staff at Westminster, the Scottish Parliament, the London Assembly, and the Northern Irish Assembly on strike, politicians and their support teams would have to cross pickets in order to go into work.

Earlier in the month, Scottish Green co-convener Patrick Harvie brought a business motion to the Scottish Parliament calling for no business to be scheduled today so that all MSPs could join the striking workers outside the Parliament building, and he has now confirmed to Bright Green that he will not be crossing the picket line in Edinburgh.

Similarly, the Green members of the London Assembly Steven Agnew, Northern Ireland’s Green leader and Assembly Member for North Down, and Caroline Lucas, have all confirmed that they won’t be crossing pickets, and will stand in solidarity with the striking workers.

The real heroes today are of course those workers out in the bitter cold, losing a day’s pay before Christmas standing up for the future of pensions in this country. But it’s great to see every senior elected official in my party joining them on the picket lines today. Let’s hope politicians from across the party boundaries join them.