On Tuesday, Terry White re-joined the Liberal Democrats and made a Press
Release to the local media – this is our response.
Rugby Green Party Statement on Terry
White
24/07/2015
24/07/2015
Terry White made
several references over the last year that he felt betrayed as a young person,
and former student, by the Lib Dems.
From 2010 to
2015, the Lib Dems were part of a coalition government that deepened NHS
privatisation and savagely cut our public services.
We’re surprised
at Terry’s objections to the Green Party wanting a far better gender balance
among our general election candidates.
Terry stood for
election as our local co-ordinator only two weeks ago without any objection
over how the Green Party nominates our local or general election candidates.
We’re proud of
having a female leader (Caroline Lucas or Natalie Bennett) since 2008 and the
most women general election candidates in both 2010 and 2015 across the entire
UK.
We also do the
same with encouraging young people to be active. Terry was one of seven Green
Party general election candidates across the West Midlands alone who were 30 or
younger on election day.
The Green Party
is and will remain a champion of the rights and positive contribution of
disabled members to the Green Party, including internally having a national
officer responsible for this work on our executive committee, and a very active
disability group - we note at no time has Terry formally raised his
concerns with the local party who after all selected him as our General
Election candidate.
In Rugby,
the Green Party is already preparing for the next local and 2017 county council
elections. We have tripled our membership in Rugby in the last year, and, in
May, Green Party received over 1 million votes in a general election for the
first time.
Notwithstanding
these points, Rugby Green Party wishes Terry White well and note that he
references disagreements with the national party and not the local party who
Terry readily admits have always been supportive to him.
Rugby Green
Party
