By Joshua Callaway
The political structure for our nation has never been less defined, as a conflicting array of parties, policies and intentions arise with the seemingly sole intention to confuse. So, what are the facts about modern politics and how can an increasingly distant political system still affect many aspects of our day-to-day lives? I spoke to the National Green Party coordinator, Chris Luffingham, to clarify some of these questions, among others.
Chris and I sat in the library on one of those mornings in which it seems the entire school had endeavoured to do the same. I was immediately struck by how far he seemed to embody the very stereotype of the environmentalist; an ecologically-concerned individual, with unshaven beard and ragged clothes, but nevertheless, in the interest of neutrality, I suppressed any personal political affliction and set about the interview. He, from the outset, seemed to express his concern at the lack of youth taking up interest in politics on both a local and national scale. He, as campaign and advertising coordinator, was responsible for ‘enticing’ new membership, and hence he was keen to emphasise the relative growth of 12,000 members from February to November 2013, which he duly attributed to the recent social media initiatives undertaken by the Green Party. A theme that became prominent throughout was one of perseverance, and he encouraged young people, of any political ability or conviction, to get involved in any way they could, citing that healthy political competition was the catalyst required to kick-start our stagnated system.
Our topic of discussion then somewhat veered unexpectedly towards the nature of the Green Party itself. I, in the naïve role that I am sure many of you too occupy, seemed to associate the Green Party as an environmentalist protest against badger culls and fracking and nothing further; however, the subsequent few minutes were to change all that. Chris portrayed a more diverse political approach that encompassed all aspects of society. In terms of economy, I was surprised to learn of Green Party involvement in the formulation of mansion tax legislation. That old saying: ‘Do not judge a book by its cover’ was no more applicable in this situation for, even I, in my resolute and somewhat stubborn conservative ways, was intrigued by some of the less well known areas of the party, and how they intend to consolidate their increasing success.
The limelight is very much shifting in the political world: the Green Party securing a parliamentary seat in the last election is testament to this very fact. Hence, it will be incredibly interesting how our generation begins to interact and involve itself with new and dynamic ideas.
The Stump 