Three Green Party deputy leadership candidates sign LGBTIQA+ Greens pledges

Voting is now open in the Green Party of England and Wales deputy leadership election. There is, however, still a month long window for the candidates to make their case to party members.

In light of this, groups within the party are continuing to publicise candidates’ commitment – or lack thereof – to the key policy and campaigning areas of interest to their members. Among those groups is the LGBTIQA+ Greens, which has asked all candidates to make nine pledges.

The pledges include commitments to support getting more LGBTIQA+ people elected, to campaign for the protection of trans rights in the Equality Act, and to support reserved places for LGBTIQA+ members on Green Party governance bodies.

Three of the candidates for deputy leader – Zack Polanski, Tyrone Scott and Nick Humberstone –  signed all nine of the pledges. The fourth candidate – Shahrar Ali – did not respond to the LGBTIQA+ Greens and their pledges.

On his decision to sign the pledges, Polanski said he “will consider it a personal responsibility alongside our party to campaign and champion our community and always strive to tackle injustice.”

Similar comments were made by Scott, who said he would use the deputy leadership post “to advocate for all LGBTIQA+ rights, especially trans rights, which are currently under threat both within and outside our party.”

Humberstone praised the LGBTIQA+ Greens and suggested that liberation groups within the party require more resource. He said, “Investing in liberation groups is hugely beneficial for the Green Partys approach to building a society that works for everyone.”

Speaking on the pledges, co-chair of the LGBTIQA+ Greens Ria Patel said, “It’s disappointing that not all deputy leader candidates have responded to the pledges. LGBTIQA+ liberation must be a priority for the next deputy leader and us as a political party in the Green movement because there can be no environmental justice without social justice for all.”

Alongside the deputy leadership election, members will be voting to elect a new executive (GPEx). The LGBTIQA+ Greens have also asked all the candidates for GPEx to sign up to the same nine pledges.

Of the four candidates for chair of GPEx, only one – the job share ticket of Ash Routh and Melanie Earp – signed all nine of the pledges. Jon Nott signed eight of the pledges. He omitted to sign the pledge committing to support reserved places for LGBTIQA+ members on the ‘Green Party Council’, a body within the party which may be created if proposals to overhaul the party’s governance structures are adopted. Adrian Spurrell signed six of the pledges. He did not sign the pledge relating to the ‘Green Party Council’, nor did he sign pledges to support efforts to get more LGBTIQA+ people elected within and outside the party or to campaign for implementation of the government’s LGBT+ Action Plan, which would see a ban on conversion therapy for all LGBTIQA+ people. Tina Rothery and Alison Teal did not respond the pledges.

There is only one candidate in the running for – Tom Scott. He has signed all nine of the LGBTIQA+ Greens pledges.

In the elections coordinator race, two of the candidates – Edward Milford and the job-share ticket of Chris Holt and Alan Borgars – did not respond to the pledges. Brian Candeland agreed to all the pledges with the exception of the pledge relating to the ‘Green Party Council’.

For external communications coordinator, Dylan Lewis-Creser has signed all nine pledges. Meanwhile, Molly Scott Cato did not respond to the pledges by the deadline.

Stacy Smith and Kefentse Dennis are the two candidates in the management coordinator election. Smith signed all nine of the pledges. Dennis signed eight of them, omitting to commit to support gender affirming healthcare for trans young people.

Of the three candidates for internal communications coordinator, only the job share team Georgie Oatley and Nannette Youssef responded to the pledges by the deadline. They signed all nine of them.

For trade union liaison officer, Matthew Hull agreed to all nine of the pledges. The job-share team of Kate Souper and Sarah Bingham did not respond.

UPDATE: Candidates respond to pledges post-deadline

Following the initial publication of the LGBTIQA+ Greens pledges, a number of candidates who did not respond before the deadline have since done so.

Molly Scott Cato agreed to five of the pledges. She did not respond to the pledge relating to reserved spaces on the Green Party Council for LGBTIQA+ proposal, the pledge to support gender affirming healthcare for trans young people, or the pledge to support the LGBTIQA+ Greens campaigns surrounding LGTBQ refugees, a ban on conversion therapy, and to deliver zero HIV by 2030.

David Farbey has since signed all nine pledges.

Shahrar Ali has not responded directly to the LGBTIQA+ Greens pledges, but has published a lengthy explanation as to why he does not support gender affirming healthcare for trans young people.

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