Giant axe

Published: 16 December, 2010

• PEOPLE are greatly worried here in Camden, as across the country, about the giant axe that is falling upon public services.

It’s all very well Eric Pickles expecting councils to do “more for less”, but in the real world the list of groups to be hit reads like a shopping list of the most vulnerable in society.

Mass unemployment and slashed services will not give us a fair and stable economy.

And as the Cancun summit has failed to even try to address climate change it’s clear that we need totally to change direction from that being taken by the government, to deal with two huge threats – economic and environmental – that confront us today.

We need to invest in the future of our economy and the future of our young people. We need to invest in a rapid reshaping of our homes and infrastructure to prepare for a low-carbon future.

This could provide jobs in areas ranging from insulation to public transport and from renewable energy to home care – the Million Jobs policy promoted by the Green Party.

NATALIE BENNETT
Camden Green Party