The Green party’s failure to make an electoral breakthrough, despite unprecedented publicity in the national media, demands reappraisal of its political strategy. While some voters may have needed reassurance that it is not a single-issue party, environmental experts and other prospective supporters were rightly horrified at the leader’s focus on leftist anti-austerity rhetoric rather than on the party’s approach to environmental sustainability and the quality of life. Natalie Bennett’s final message to voters on election night was that voting Green “will keep the Tories out”. This was a grave tactical error. To achieve a change in government the party should have focussed on its many policies that would have appealed to wavering Tory and Liberal Democrat voters.
Tim Cooper
Former Green party chairman
