With the General Election approaching, Chris Goodall was recently
asked to list his priorities for the Oxford West & Abingdon
constituency.
His response below illustrates the clear analysis and joined-up thinking which have earned Chris Goodall such a strong reputation as a writer and analyst.
a) A complete block on the expansion of Oxford. No ifs, no buts. (This is a real point of difference between us and the other parties, all of whom seem to support extending Oxford northwards and southeastwards).
b) Focus on the provision of lower-cost housing for Oxford, Kidlington and Abingdon. Use of previously developed land within existing borders. For example, conversion of spare land at Westgate rather than the grotesque three fold expansion of the shopping centre. (approved by LibDem and Labour city councillors).
c) Continued initiatives on local renewables. (We strongly support local Labour plans and would go much further, for example in generating electricity from food waste). Emphasis on building the local skills to provide small scale renewables and improvements in insulation, particularly in Victorian housing.
d) More work on local food provision, partly for employment reasons. (A strong Green focus around the country)
e) Much better provision of health prevention programmes, focusing on diet, exercise, alcohol use reduction and mental health improvement.
f) Long-term, consistent and carefully thought-through plans to reduce car use across the area. No easy answers to this, but we can cut private car use and replace with public transport.
g) Much larger fraction of local budgets devoted to cooperatively-owned and community-run ventures to provide improved public services.