This year the Met Office station at Lowestoft recorded both the warmest and wettest February since its records began. In 2023/24 we also had more named storms than ever before. As a result, there was frequent and extensive flooding across East Suffolk with damage to homes and gardens, roads and crops. Yet in February 2023 the Lowestoft station had recorded the driest February since records began with only  4.4mm of rainfall, less than 5% of that recorded this year.

Fighting to lessen the impending climate emergency has always been at the core of Green Party policy but global inaction means continuing climate change is now inevitable. Here in East Suffolk we need to prepare for changes including rising sea levels, more strong storms, flash flooding, heat waves and droughts. Climate change will also threaten the supply chain for imported food for people and animals and accelerate global migration as parts of the world become uninhabitable.

I believe we need urgent action from local and national government which should include the following:

• Undertake a climate risk assessment for East Suffolk and develop a strategic plan for adaptation.
• Review climate related policies in the Local Plan, including restrictions on building on flood plains.
• Update the Shoreline Management Plan to take account of the latest sea level projections.
• Develop a plan involving local government and health and social care services to  reduce stress and excess mortality arising from heatwaves,
• Ensure better management of water supplies for domestic, business and agricultural uses.

As a Green MP I would push for all these actions and work with everyone who cares about ensuring a liveable future for us all.

This piece was first published in the May editions of the Felixstowe and Martlesham Flyers https://www.flyeronline.co.uk and in the Tide Collection (Aldeburgh, Leiston, Saxmundham and Southwold editions) https://www.leistonpress.com/printing/tide-collection/

JULIAN CUSACK

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Julian Cusack, Green Party candidate for Suffolk Coastal, said

‘The government has a legal duty to halt the decline of species by 2030. Currently only 3% of land in England is protected and managed for nature. The last thing we need is politicians getting in the way of increasing the protection of important wildlife sites.

SSSI are the finest sites for wildlife and natural features in England, supporting many characteristic, rare and endangered species, habitats and natural features.  There are several important SSSI in Suffolk Coastal including some which will be impacted by the construction of Sizewell C and the proposed National Grid energy projects.

The importance of the SSSI designation is exemplified by Sizewell Marshes SSSI which is home to rare plant species and supports breeding birds such as teal, gadwall, snipe and lapwings.  Due to its designation as an SSSI, the Sizewell C project team is now obliged to develop a replacement habitat elsewhere to compensate for damage to the marshes.’

The bill to transfer responsibility for designating SSSI is a private member’s bill and is scheduled for a second reading in the House of Commons on Friday 26 April 2024.

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Co-leader Carla Denyer, who is standing as the parliamentary candidate in Bristol Central, said:

“This country faces an acute housing crisis. There are over a million households on council waiting lists. In England the average home for sale now costs more than 8 times the annual average household earnings.

“We desperately need a massive increase in the supply of affordable social housing. Councils have a vital role to play but they need a framework that supports them to provide the homes that people desperately need. We need to unlock the policies that will make hundreds of thousands of extra council homes available – for good. We also need a fair deal for the mil lions of people renting in the private sector.”

The policies the Green Party would introduce to help councils increase the supply of affordable housing include:

• Providing funding to councils to meet their needs for affordable social housing and lift the overly restrictive rules on council borrowing for housebuilding – ensuring at least an extra 150,000 council homes a year are made available through a mix of new build, refurbishment, conversions and buying up existing homes
• Ending Right to Buy, enabling local authorities to keep council homes available and affordable in the community for good
• Taming the private rental market through rent controls, in places where the rental market is overheated, to ensure a fair rent, as well as ending no- fault evictions.
• Creating a ‘community right to buy’, giving councils, housing associations and community housing groups first refusal to buy certain properties that come onto the market, including former social housing bought under Right to Buy; properties in need of energy efficiency improvements; or any property left empty for an unacceptably long time

Co-leader Adrian Ramsay, who is standing as parliamentary candidate for Waveney Valley, added:

“Whilst our housing crisis is one of supply, it is also a crisis of housing quality, and homes too often being built with a view to developers’ profits rather than community needs. That’s why our Right Homes, Right Place, Right Price charter which we announced last year would transform the planning system to ensure all new homes are built to the highest environmental standards while prioritising brownfield sites and requiring all new developments come with investment in local services, better bus services and infrastructure for walking and cycling.”

For more information see Greens call for Right Homes, Right Place, Right Price Charter

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Building more homes in Suffolk Coastal seems like a good idea but they haven’t always met local needs. Too many over-priced new houses have been built without additional energy efficiency measures while there continues to be a shortage of affordable homes to buy or rent. And more new developments are being proposed such as the Howlett Way site, despite local objections and associated environmental devastation.

Green Party policy has always been that local communities should have much more influence over plans for large scale housing. The new Green/Lib Dem/Independent (GLI) administration at East Suffolk Council (ESC) is working hard to consult with local residents and businesses to understand and address their concerns. For example, a Citizens’ Panel has been launched for the Felixstowe North Garden Neighbourhood, to explore issues around climate change, community facilities, affordable housing, energy and local employment. The GLI administration is also working to increase homes to let at social rents by at least 400 properties by 2028, although the state of local government finance means this will be difficult.

Meanwhile, Parish and Town Councillors try to ensure new housing developments are of an appropriate scale with the right mix of housing and access to local services. Unfortunately, valid objections have been over-ruled too often in the past. Hopefully, this will change with a new grass roots organisation, the East Suffolk Planning Alliance (ESPA) which will bring together parish and town councillors with ESC planners at regular meetings.

ESPA members and Green Party councillors are also concerned about the current failure of building regulations to require energy efficiency measures in new homes such as low carbon heating systems, high levels of insulation or solar panels on roofs. National guidance needs to be upgraded but that will probably have to wait for a new Government. It cannot come soon enough!

A longer version of this piece was first published in the April editions of the Felixstowe, Woodbridge and Martlesham Flyers https://www.flyeronline.co.uk and in the Tide Collection (Aldeburgh, Leiston, Saxmundham and Southwold editions) https://www.leistonpress.com/printing/tide-collection/

JULIAN CUSACK

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The Green Party has selected Rachel Smith-Lyte as their candidate for the Suffolk Police and Crime Commissioner election taking place on 2nd May. If elected she will join the growing number of women across England who hold these important appointments, bringing a fresh perspective to policing.

The Green Party are the main challengers to the Conservatives for the Suffolk-wide role. In last year’s elections they polled higher than ever across the county, beating Labour and winning more than twice as many votes as the Liberal Democrats.

Rachel has been an East Suffolk District councillor for Melton ward since 2019. In 2023 when the Green Party took over from the Conservatives to lead the council in coalition with Lib Dems and an Independent, she was appointed Cabinet Member for the environment.

Rachel said: “Last year, the people of Suffolk voted the Conservatives out of power in all four district councils they had previously led. TheGreen Party became the largest group on 3 of those 4 councils. 

“It is clear that people across Suffolk are fed up with the steady erosion of services under the Conservatives, and that the election for our Police and Crime Commissioner will be a straight fight between me and the Conservative incumbent.”

“Our police force is under serious pressure. With cuts from the Conservatives we have seen an erosion of front line policing, with the beat seemingly a thing of the past. Police officers are left plugging the gap from the lack of adequate mental health and care services, and a court system struggling to cope.”

 “As Police and Crime Commissioner, I would resist further cuts to our critical police service in Suffolk, send a message to the government that our communities need police back on the ground, while seeking to ensure officers feel supported, resourced and valued to do the best job they can.”

“I would also seek to stand up for marginalised communities whether that is women suffering domestic violence or people of colour being targeted by stop and search. Last but not least, I would make environmental and wildlife crime a higher priority, seeking to protect the unique local environment that I know people are passionate about here in Suffolk.”

Green Party Parliamentary candidate for Suffolk Coastal Julian Cusack said “I think Rachel has rightly identified the need for the Suffolk Police Force to be properly resourced. She is an excellent choice to bring a different perspective to the role of Police and Crime Commissioner.”

ENDS

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MEDIA RELEASE: 13 December 2023

GREENS CALL FOR URGENT ACTION ON ROADS NEAR SIZEWELL C SITE

The Green Party’s Prospective Parliamentary Candidate Julian Cusack today called on Suffolk County Council and EDF to ‘get a grip’ on road and traffic conditions near the proposed Sizewell C site amid persistent rumours that the Government will ‘green light’ construction in January.

Julian Cusack said, “During the early years of SZC construction, the existing road infrastructure will need to take considerably more traffic than ever before.  It is now imperative that Suffolk County Council and the Police Authority, funded by EDF, implement integrated traffic management plans to mitigate the impact on local residents and road users.”

Julian Cusack continued, “Incident management is a particular concern in the area. Yesterday, for example, there was significant flooding on the A12 at Yoxford, as well as at multiple locations around Kelsale and Leiston, which caused chaos. Fordley Road was blocked by vehicles ‘rat running’ to avoid the flooding and there was a broken down van at the junction of Hawthorn Road and the B1122.  Situations like this can only be exacerbated by additional construction vehicles.

Furthermore, site traffic is already disrupting and risking the lives of those who live nearby.  Only this morning, local residents at Middleton Moor on the B1122 observed two Sizewell bound tipper lorries slamming on their brakes before clocking 39mph on a Speed Indicator Device in a 30mph speed limit.”

Julian Cusack went on to say, “Nearly six months ago, eight local parishes wrote to Suffolk County Council and SZC proposing additional measures to protect their communities, including better enforcement of speed limits, investment in highways and pedestrian footpaths and incident management plans.  So far we have not seen any action.”

Julian Cusack concluded, “This is now becoming urgent.  We need to know that comprehensive measures will be implemented as soon as possible to protect all residents and road users.”

Notes for editors

Julian Cusack lives in the Constituency near Saxmundham and is Chair of Middleton Parish Council. He is a Chartered Accountant and works in the insurance sector.  He has also recently started up a regenerative farming business near Kelsale.  He was a member of Suffolk County Council for 8 years in the 1980s and is now Chair of Suffolk Coastal Green Party.

He is the Prospective Parliamentary candidate for the Suffolk Coastal Constituency.

……………

Text of the 8 Parishes letter, dated 12/7/23

Dear Sirs,

Despite the mitigation measures in the DCO and in the Deed of Obligation, the undersigned Parish Councils all share substantial concerns about the impact on their communities of the Sizewell C project and propose further measures to help alleviate them.

This letter relates to issues arising during the Early Years of the project before the Sizewell Link Road is operational. This is a key risk period when the existing road infrastructure – not just the B1122 – is being asked to take considerably more traffic than it ever has before, bringing significant new safety hazards to residents.

We set out our concerns under the following headings: speed limits, emissions, pedestrian footpaths, highway maintenance and incident management. While examples are given in the Schedules below, this letter is not a substitute for individual Parish Councils’ detailed feedback to the proposed Early Years plans.

Speed limits

We call for a significant extension to the routes covered or proposed to be covered by speed limits. Routes for which we request speed limits are set out in Schedule 1.

We also call for a significant commitment to the active enforcement of existing and new speed limits, especially during the Early Years, and covering the 24/7 timings of SZC shift patterns. We call upon EDF to make funds available to the Police Authority for this purpose.

HGV and bus emissions

We call upon EDF to require their HGV and bus contractors to only use vehicles that comply with Euro VI NOx and PM emissions standards, which are those mandated for the London-wide Low Emission Zone (LEZ) and the Clean Air Zones in seven UK other cities.

Pedestrian footways

We support proposals for the provision of additional new footways along stretches of the B1122 and B1125 where these can be accommodated within existing highway boundaries.

In addition, we request that, where Parish Councils are able to secure the agreement of relevant landowners, EDF support with design, administrative resources and funding the establishment of permissive footpaths to provide further safe routes for pedestrians.

We further request that funds be made available for the maintenance of all existing and new footpaths in good condition.

Cycle routes

We call upon EDF and SCC to create safe cycle routes between the A12 and the coast to compensate for loss of safe cycling on the B1122, B1125 and surrounding minor roads due to SZC traffic. These would be additional to those currently planned.

Highways maintenance

We note that there are certain locations on the B1122 and the B1125 which regularly suffer from surface flooding (See Schedule 2).

We request that works be undertaken to permanently improve drainage at these locations.

Incident management

We note that under current operating conditions there are occasions when blockages on the A12 result in traffic diverting along unclassified roads. The roads we believe that are most affected include those set out in Schedule 3.

We are concerned that the frequency and severity of these incidents will increase if and when the Sizewell C project gets underway.

We call upon Suffolk County Council and the Police Authority, funded by EDF, to develop and consult on contingency traffic management plans that can be put in place immediately to limit the likelihood and severity of congestion causing disruption and risks to residents living along these routes, and for these plans to be actively enforced.

By way of illustration of these concerns please see the Case Study set out in Schedule 4.

Community liaison

We invite representatives of EDF and the Councils to attend the next meeting of the Joint Parish Councils named below to discuss the contents of this letter.

We further call upon EDF to reconstitute the Community Forum.

Yours faithfully

Blythburgh Parish Council

Darsham Parish Council

Kelsale-cum-Carlton Parish Council

Middleton-cum-Fordley Parish Council

Theberton & Eastbridge Parish Council

Walberswick Parish Council

Westleton Parish Council

Yoxford Parish Council

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Julian Cusack said, “The government has announced there will be a new national park in England[1] and now would be a good time to think about setting one up in the east of the country.”

In the last decade the landscape of East Suffolk has come under attack from a proliferation of proposals for major energy projects including subsea cable landfalls, cable corridors and converter stations relating to offshore wind farms and interconnectors.  These entail digging trenches through the Suffolk Coast and Heaths AONB causing untold damage to sensitive habitats and wildlife and the construction of major infrastructure in historic rural communities.

Julian Cusack continued, “This vision for a semi-industrialised future for the East Suffolk coast is at odds with the former vision of a ‘Heritage Coast’ aimed at hosting a valuable tourism sector while meeting the AONB objectives of conserving and enhancing habitats and biodiversity.

Furthermore, it is in the middle of England’s East Coast wetlands which were added to the UK’s Tentative List of World Heritage sites earlier this year[2] recognising them as being of outstanding universal value to humanity.”

Julian Cusack concluded, “The AONB already meets the ‘natural beauty’ criteria for designation as a National Park and we believe that it also meets the test of providing opportunities for open-air recreation. With an over-riding obligation to conserve and enhance the natural beauty, wildlife and cultural heritage of a National Park, we believe such a designation would help shift the focus back from ‘Energy Coast’ to ‘Heritage Coast’.”

[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-pledges-to-boost-britains-access-to-nature-ahead-of-cop28

[2] https://www.rspb.org.uk/whats-happening/news/east-coast-wetlands

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