Bristol is a wonderful city, but it also has many problems – lack of affordable, effective transport; some of the worst air pollution in Europe; a chronic undersupply of housing; and more.

But in 2016, we have a huge opportunity to make Bristol a Greener City. For the first time ever Bristol is electing its full 70-seat city council at the same time as the Mayor, giving us a unique opportunity to turn Bristol completely Green. Our Mayoral and council candidates will then be able to tackle Bristol's problems at the root.

However, elections are expensive. Print costs alone run into thousands of pounds. Just standing for Mayor requires a deposit of £500. A substantial amount for a party like ours

Unlike other parties, we do not receive large corporate funding. This is a campaign run and funded by ordinary Bristolians. Can you help us raise the money we desperately need to mount a serious campaign to turn Bristol even more Green?

Pictured: Green Party Leader Natalie Bennett campaigning with Green Mayoral Candidate Tony Dyer - courtesy of Aaron Chown

The Impact - A Green Mayor

Tony Dyer could become the first Green Mayor of any city in Britain. The Greens could at least double the number of councillors they have from the current 14, to 28. We have the opportunity to make a massive impact and turn Bristol into a real Green capital of the UK and Europe. 

Tony Dyer is running a positive campaign for Bristol, with policies to deliver decent housing, quality public transport, skills for the future and a green-energy city. So far Tony has announced several attractive policies he would implement as Mayor, including:

1. Challenging George Osbourne to allow Bristol to retain its local taxes so the city can invest it the future.
2. Committing to appointing an Assistant Mayor for Democracy dedicated to improving democracy, transparency and scrutiny of decision making within the council.
3. Committing to investing in Bristol's most deprived neighbourhoods, providing opportunities for all of Bristol's residents to share in the city's future.

(See www.bristolgreenparty.org.uk for more)

The Impact - 28 Green Councillors

Pictured: Our current set of 14 Green Councillors

The Greens could also double the number of councillors they have from the current 14. At the last council elections in May 2016, The Greens won an extra 7 council seats, despite only around 20 being available for change, and the only party to make a net gain in seats. The Greens are clearly the rising force in Bristol politics with councillors in all but one of the wards in the Bristol West parliamentary constituency and ambitions  for more in Bristol South and the first gains in both Bristol East and Bristol North West.

Bristol’s Green Councillor Group, despite only having 9 months together, has already created a huge impact on the city council, including:

1. Winning the fight to prevent fossil fuel power stations across the city
2. Successfully introducing an ethical lettings charter after the Greens brought it to Full Council
3. Successfully keeping local libraries open across the city
4. Bringing students, staff and councillors together to call for a fossil-free, fully divested University of Bristol

(See www.bristolgreenparty.org.uk for more)

So ... imagine what can be done in four years with 28 or more councillors, or even if the Green Group of councillors were the largest political group in Bristol.

It’s all there to be done, but unlike other parties, the main barrier is our cash.

Why We Need You

Running elections campaigns can be expensive and unfortunately, there is a clear link between expenditure and success...

This doesn't mean causality, but it's sure an uncanny correlation!

So already The Greens do all of our work through a network of members, volunteers and activists. The Greens have the potential! Your donation is made direct to Bristol Green Party, but these are the sorts of things your money will be going towards to help make Bristol Green...

Some Example Costs - Electing a Mayor
​£500 pays for our Mayoral deposit. 
£2,000 pays for Mayoral campaign literature to be sent across 100,000 households
£2,250 pays for a part time campaign manager on the living wage for 3 months

Some Example Costs - Electing Councillors
£200 pays for a single round of a ward leaflet, delivered to households by our network of volunteers. (Do you want to see this happen in a specific place? Contribute and get in touch!)
£4,500 pays for enough campaign literature across all of the places we hope to hold or gain councillors in. So this is sufficient to provide a good chance of doubling our councillor numbers. 

The Big One...
£7,000 pays for a short term lease of an office space, just like in our campaign last year. We really hope we could increase our funding target to include this, should be successful with our original asks above.

The rewards…

There are limits to what can be given but here are some favourites for you...

£5 – The warm feeling of happiness that comes with knowing you’ve supported a Green Bristol in 2016
£15 – Your name mentioned on a special ‘thank you’ page of the Bristol Green Party website
£30 – All of the above plus thank you tweets from @BristolGreen, Tony Dyer and Ani Stafford-Townsend, our Green Group leader 
£40 – All of the above plus a Vote Green poster signed by Tony Dyer and Ani Stafford Townsend, our Green Group leader
£70 – To be confirmed, we've got something in the works ...
£100 - To be confirmed, we've got something in the works ...
£250 – A special dinner with Tony Dyer and Ani Stafford-Townsend, our Green Group Leader.
£500 (and over) - If you are happy to do so, we would love to work with you on our campaign. We’ll set up a meeting with our party co-ordinators and key campaign managers to ensure your money goes to where it counts.

Thank you!

Picture courtesy of Jon Craig

Legal

By the way, in order to remain transparent and democratic, your donation will be going directly to Bristol Green Party. We are legally bound to report donations over £500 to the Electoral Commission. We can only accept donations over £500 from what are known as permissible donors, and for individuals this means being on the electoral roll in the UK. We'll need you to give us your address so that we can check.

Published and promoted by Bristol Green Party, 13 Effingham Road, Bristol, BS6 5BH.