It has been 4 months and 4 days since I presented a motion to my council calling for an immediate ceasefire and the recognition of a palestinian state.
Oxfam calculates that the Israeli military is responsible for killing 250 Palestinians per day, and that does not include those who have their lives stolen by hunger, disease and cold.
At least 31,250 Palestinians have been needlessly slaughtered in the 125 days since my calls for peace were ignored by my council.
It should go without saying that the Green Party and I condemn all forms of violence regardless of the perpetrator, and I call again for an immediate ceasefire, release of all hostages and political prisoners and for the delivery of aid to those who so desperately need it.
Today, I will send out an even stronger message to the establishment as part of my bid to become the first ever Mayor of the East Midlands.
When I am elected with your help on 2nd May, I will use my power and influence to hold our elected representatives to account. I will not let the Tories get away with their purposefully divisive rhetoric and nor will I let Keir Starmer’s Labour keep their head buried in the sand.
I will use my leadership role to call for a democratic solution which allows every voice to be heard. A solution in which the West do not use their power to meddle and manipulate, but instead facilitate peace. A solution which is not as arbitrary as two warring states, but instead a unified region.
Locally, I will ensure that policing in our community is fair, unbiased and democratic. I will not stand by and watch peaceful protests be squashed by authoritarian powers. The attempts of the far right to portray our criticism of the Israeli state’s genocide as anti-semitism are sickening. I will defend the right of everyone in the East Midlands and beyond to speak their mind, providing they do so with kindness and compassion.
I will support the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement and ensure that my spending practices as your Mayor meet those strict requirements. Public money should only ever be used for the benefit of the community, not to fuel suffering.
Our region will be a sanctuary for all people. I will reject this hostile government’s backward migration laws, and call out their divisive and racist rhetoric. People of all backgrounds, faiths, and genders are welcome here. The Tories may only choose to hold out a lifeline for Ukranians, but it is my belief and that of the Green Party that vulnerable people of all nationalities should be able to find safety in Britain.
The puppet occupying Downing Street, whose strings are pulled by the far right, needs to be sent a message. A message that business as usual is no longer acceptable, that turning a blind eye to genocide is against the will of the people, and that his politics of hate is not any way British.
I want to be proud of my country again. I want our flag to once again become a symbol of hope, compassion and integrity. For our nation to embrace people from the world over, and work hard to ensure that each and every one of us can thrive.
Lobbying, protest and direct action have failed to convince our politicians that change is necessary. It is clear that we cannot convince the wrong people to do the right thing, and that we must now come together and replace them.
It costs £10,000 for me to stand in the election for East Midlands Mayor, but through pure people power and donations as small as £1, we have now crowdfunded that entire amount. Change is only possible together, and we are certainly proving that.
We must use our votes to put positive, progressive and honest people into positions of power.
If you do not believe that your vote counts, just look at me. Last year, I was elected as North East Derbyshire’s first ever Green with a landslide victory in a traditional Conservative stronghold.
Each and every one of you has the ability to do just that. On 2nd May, you can vote for better. You can vote for justice. You can vote for me and the Green Party.
Thank you all for your commitment, determination and generosity to others. You, like the vast majority of people, are remarkable individuals with kind hearts.
Please get involved with my campaign and give the East Midlands a strong, passionate voice.
In solidarity now and always
We should be keeping out of the Palestine, Israel conflict, no more supporting Palestine, no more supporting Israel, no arms delivered to Israel no military support nothing at all. It’s not our fight, if you want Britain to be a sanctuary stop supporting the ‘palestinian genocide’ rhetoric. What Israel has done is indeed disgusting but their response is like using a sledgehammer to crack an egg, us getting involved in these affairs is only making us less able to look after ourselves. I’m more concerned with the state of the roads of the east midlands, the exponential rising rate of homelessness aswell as the cost of living crisis. Young girls raped and abused both by foreigners and locals, people murdered with prison sentences becoming completely unjust. 1.2million people out of work, the appalling state of the education system and from my own sons experience the draconic pressures put on the youth today, Palestine should not be our focus I want to vote green, I want to vote you frank.. but international affairs are not my concern, if they were there is more than just Israel committing horrific acts of genocide and breach of human rights. If you want to champion the world stage we need to make the UK stronger through our own development, improvement and repair. This is not happening by the looks of it and quite frankly, this whole Palestine/Israel business is distracting everyone from our own issues at home. I’m not going to clean some else’s house whilst my own is in a dire state.
With great respect
Andrew
Hello Andrew, thanks for reaching out. Unfortunately our nation tangled itself in the Israel/Palestine conflict many decades ago and it is important that we do have a clear stance on this as politicians. I have a plan locally for a Green Industrial Revolution. I am the only candidate who has said that they will go back to government and negotiate reparations for austerity (our region recieved the least public investment last year, and for many years before). Our region has the lowest levels of higher education qualifications, 86,000 job seekers, one of the worst graduarte retention rates and a productivitry rate 14% lower than the national average. I know how hard life is here right now. I went to a state school hit by funding cuts, i graduated during the pandemic, I am not on the housing ladder, I do not own a car, I am self employed, I am elected to a council which has seen its funding slashed. We do have to get on with sorting out our home but we can do that whilst also condemning genocide. There is no freedom without freedom for all, there is no success without success for all. Thanks, Frank