Carla Denyer and Adrian Ramsay delivering a pre-recorded speech to Green Party conference

The Green Party of England and Wales have demanded an immediate general election following Rishi Sunak’s coronation as prime minister. Sunak was the only candidate in the second Tory leadership election this year to receive the 100 nominations from MPs required to make it onto a ballot of members. As such, he has become the party’s leader and the country’s prime minister by default.

Responding to the news, Green Party co-leader Adrian Ramsay said, “The country cannot afford more divisive infighting amongst a few elitist Conservatives whose policies are failing people struggling with the cost-of-living crisis. Even Conservative Party MPs and members have been excluded from the vote this time.

“People need to be democratically involved in finding solutions. This must include a General Election, and the opportunity to elect more Greens committed to a more equal society and solving the environmental crisis.

“The Conservatives are responsible for plunging this country into an economic and political crisis. It’s clear to the entire country that they are simply incapable of getting us out of it.”

The Green Party has accused Sunak of having a ‘terrible record’ on tackling inequality and the climate crisis. They cite the loopholes in the government’s windfall tax which reward oil and gas giants for investing more money in fossil fuel extraction, and the cuts Sunak signed off on international development funding which reduced the money available for countries most affected by environmental crises to respond to and tackle them.

Ramsay also said that the Tories are seeking to impose the “horrors” of renewed austerity despite lacking any electoral mandate or such a project. He said, “The Tories want to impose the horrors of Austerity 2.0 in their Halloween Budget, but have no electoral mandate for doing this. Austerity means more cuts to vital public services and more suffering for people across the country.

“The government simply cannot govern under this Prime Minister – it is unfit for office. A General Election will allow people to have their say and vote for policies to reduce the cost of living and protect our environment.

“The Green Party stands for a fairer, greener country. The way out of the crisis is to do the opposite of what the government is planning.

“We would reduce inequality through progressive taxation, including a Wealth Tax, and raise money through windfall taxes on the companies making super profits during this cost-of-living crisis. We would use the money raised to make sure people can afford to keep warm and fund a national home insulation programme. We would reduce inequality by asking those with the deepest pockets to pay more tax to help fund quality public services for all. And, we would invest in the kind of economy that puts people and the planet before greed and super-profits for giant corporations.”

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