My name is Sukhinder Paul Singh Hundal.

Full statement

I am 55 years old and have been living in Bedfordshire for the past 48 years. I teach Biology within a Secondary School and before this I worked as a Research Scientist having obtained a Ph.D in Molecular Biology. Politically, I have always been left of centre and have been politically active throughout my life. I joined the Green Party in 2022 and have supported the local Green candidates in the recent May 2023 Local Elections in both Amptill and St Albans, whilst standing myself in Dunstable North. It is clear to me that we need an alternative to the present two-party monopoly which has governed the country for past 100 years. Our present ‘first past the post’ system is not conducive to the greater plurality in political approaches required at this pivotal moment in time and it is for this reason, I believe in a fairer proportional representation system, one which has been shown to lead to more long-term decision making amongst our European neighbours. Our present short-term politics seems to me to only serve the governing party rather than to be in the best interests of the country. I am a believer that the state has a major role to play in both regulating our neoliberal market economy as well as investing in our public services, and it is for this reason I support a progressive taxation policy in which we raise much needed funds to ensure we have a society which looks after the many rather than a select few. Equally, the challenges posed by climate change also offers an opportunity for us to invest in low carbon approaches and technologies which will not only allow us to meet our climate change goals but can help us to become a more dynamic economic power, one which is less dependent on the financial services sector and on consumerism to support economic growth. This cannot happen unless we are prepared to invest in our future. Such investment will not be cheap and requires the political leadership which the Greens can provide. People are, naturally, apprehensive over change but the Greens have a vision, a strategy and a message that such investment is not only good for our society but for the planet also. We are the only political party which is prepared to take the tough decisions to invest in low carbon approaches and technologies, which will result in better insulation for our homes, a reduction in our dependence on fossil fuels, an improvement in the quality of our water and air, and an improvement in public transport. The other major political parties have jettisoned their green credentials for political expediency and short-term success. We can no longer afford to continue in this vein, an approach which leads to delay after delay in making the bold decisions which are required to improve the health of our country, and our planet, for future generations. Our children, rightly, will not forgive us unless we take steps now to implement the changes required which will allow them to have a brighter future. This includes forming closer alliances with our European partners and revisiting the disastrous decision to leave the European Union. It is our responsibility to act and be bold enough to say that the present political consensus is not working.