Local Government Elections 2018

The Sheffield City Council Elections will be held on Thursday 3rd May 2018. Each ward has three councillors and one third of the council seats will be up for election.

STAG has produced a Street Tree Manifesto for these elections and we are asking each candidate to tell us where they stand on the 5 policies we are asking for. These are:

• Protect and Create Street Tree Canopy for Health
• Include Trees in Air Quality Policy
• Put in place a Comprehensive Street Tree Management Strategy that prioritises Conservation and Public Health
• Resist Private Monopolies over our Public Services
• Resist damaging PFI Contracts that create perverse incentives and excessive costs

Here’s a link to the full manifesto and background material on each of these policies. Three are directly about trees, the other two are about aspects of public policy that have played a big part in the dreadful mess over our street trees.

NB STAG does not take a party political position on these issues. For example we are not taking a general position on private company involvement in public services but we are pointing out that very large long term contracts, like Streets Ahead, create rigid monopolies that are against the principle of a free market, a limitation on local democracy and a restriction on the ability of public authorities to respond to changing circumstances, all of these things have affected our street trees.

We will publish the candidates responses here when they are received, as well as sharing them on social media.