Caroline Lucas: Former Green Party chief to face down at subsequent election
Former Green Party chief Caroline Lucas is stepping down on the subsequent basic election.
In a letter despatched to her Brighton Pavilion constituents, Ms Lucas stated it had been the “privilege of my life to serve this extraordinary constituency and community”.
But she stated the “threats to our precious planet” had grow to be “ever more urgent” and her function in parliament because the Green Party’s solely MP meant she had “struggled to spend the time I want on these accelerating crises”.
“I have therefore decided not to stand again as your MP at the next election,” she stated.
Ms Lucas, 62, was elected because the MP for Brighton Pavilion on the 2010 basic election, changing into the primary Green Party candidate to be elected to the House of Commons.
Her share of the vote has elevated at each election since, with constituents returning her to parliament with a majority of virtually 20,000 in 2019.
In her letter, Ms Lucas stated her give attention to being “first and foremost a good constituency MP” meant she had “not been able to focus as much as I would like” on local weather considerations.
She stated: “I’ve done everything possible to help wherever I can and always worked to ensure that people feel heard, that their concerns matter, and that they are not alone.
“But the depth of those constituency commitments, along with the actual tasks of being my get together’s sole MP, imply that, sarcastically, I’ve not been capable of focus as a lot as I would really like on the existential challenges that drive me – the character and local weather emergencies.”
She added: “I have always been a different kind of politician – as those who witnessed my arrest, court case and acquittal over peaceful protest at the fracking site in Balcombe nearly 10 years ago will recall.
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“And the reality is, as these threats to our treasured planet grow to be ever extra pressing, I’ve struggled to spend the time I need on these accelerating crises.”
Ms Lucas was Green Party leader between 2008 and 2012 before returning for a second stint at the helm, this time co-leading the party with Jonathan Bartley for two years from September 2016.
Sky News understands she is not stepping back from public life and will continue campaigning.
The Green Party’s current leadership heralded her as a “pressure of nature” and said they would strive to get more MPs to build on her legacy.
Caroline Lucas is the Green Party’s solely MP
Co-leader Carla Denyer stated: “Caroline’s impact on politics in this country cannot be overstated: she truly is a force of nature and has been an extraordinary servant of the people of Brighton Pavilion as well as the Green Party. We are so proud of her achievements.”
Adrian Ramsay added: “Very few politicians can claim to have changed the course of the national debate in the way Caroline has. She has brought so much to us as a party, shown real integrity in her work and added a crucial dimension to our democracy in this country.”
He stated the get together is now “striving to get more Green MPs elected at the next general election so that we can build on Caroline’s achievements”.
Ms Lucas joins a rising band of senior elected politicians who’ve declared that they are going to step down on the subsequent election, which is predicted to be contested subsequent yr.
More than 50 MPs have introduced an finish to their Commons’ careers, together with former SNP Westminster chief Ian Blackford, Conservative former deputy prime minister Dominic Raab and former deputy Labour Party chief Margaret Beckett.