With 12 hours to go until the polls open, Lichfield and Burntwood’s candidates have been invited to make one final plea to voters in their own words.

Below is Green Party candidate Robert Pass’ eve of the election statement…

Robert Pass
Robert Pass

“People all over this country are waking up. It is dawning on increasing numbers of people that our democracy has been hijacked by a financial elite that has more influence over our politicians than the voters whose interests they are supposed to represent.

You may have noticed that the elites of this world, the 1% of top-earners are doing rather well out of the current system. They spend vast sums of money persuading politicians and the public that the extreme form of capitalism we have today, a system based on greed and selfishness which crashed the world economy and is trashing our planet is the only way to build a better future.

Who are they kidding? The Green Party has a clear, positive vision for how we can reclaim our democracy and build a fair and sustainable society.

The first task is to tackle the vested interests head on by taking the private money out of politics. Is it any wonder we have not radically reformed the banks or weaned ourselves off fossil fuels, when our political parties are dependant on their money?

The old Establishment parties are still living in a dream world of infinite growth on a finite planet. Unwilling or unable to accept that the planet has ecological limits and that climate change is a complete game-changer. The Green Party grasps the significance of this threat to future generations and will revitalise our economy to meet this challenge.

The Government should be using its huge spending power to invest in the UK economy, we’d create thousands of jobs in areas such as house-building, energy efficiency, and large-scale renewable energy. We need to invest in our public services, bringing the NHS, the education system and the railways back into public hands, and focus on building an economy that works for the many and not just the few.

We can afford to do this, but the wealthiest 1% must pay their fair share and our investment priorities should be different – it is deeply offensive to be spending £50 billion on HS2 or £100 billion on Trident, when we have 1 million people reliant on food banks and 3.5 million children living in poverty. Austerity is a choice. The Conservatives are trying to balance the books on the backs of the poor, Ed Milliband does not seem to have the courage to resist their flawed ideology.

A vote for the Green Party is more than just a protest vote, it is a vote for an economy that functions in the interests of the common good, for a society that is fair and democratic and a planet that is habitable for future generations.

Whatever the result on Thursday, I’m not going anywhere, I’m a local man and I’m committed to this area.”

The candidates standing in the Lichfield constituency are:

  • Andy Bennetts – Class War
  • Michael Fabricant – Conservatives
  • Robert Pass – Green Party
  • John Rackham – UKIP
  • Paul Ray – Lib Dem
  • Chris Worsey – Labour

Founder of Lichfield Live and editor of the site.

6 Comments
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Darryl
8 years ago

I really hope you do well Robert.

Steve R
8 years ago

He’s got my vote. Spot on!

Anne Critchley
8 years ago

Well done Rob for putting over the Greens policies so eloquently over the past few weeks, will be thinking of you tomorrow & wishing you all the best.

John
8 years ago

Robert Pass has a clear understanding of the truth. Politics is rotten to the core, we need a new generation of politicians to break the power of the rich who are running this country for the benefit of the rich.

Climate change is the biggest issue for my wife and I. We are very worried about the kind of world our grandchildren will inherit. We’ll be voting Green for the first time today.

Bob
8 years ago

Green vote placed this morning. Best of luck to Rob and the rest of the Green party who are doing great things up and down our beautiful country.

Mat Hayward
8 years ago

Hi Rob
We did it pal. We did it. From nothing, we have you standing in the most important election since 1945. You offer us a real choice. Well done. As the old song sayeth…”we shall not be moved.!”