Davy Jones is standing for the Green Party in Brighton Kemptown and Peacehaven and says it is important for him to stand up for what matters in the place where he and his two daughters grew up – a place whose radicalism has inspired his politics for decades.
THIS is his first foray into actually being a politician. Davy is a yoga teacher – the first to stand for parliament! – and he also helps organisations involve the people who benefit from their services in their decision-making.
He says: “There is only one party I would consider standing for – The Green Party is the only party which rejects austerity, stands up for the most vulnerable in our society, protects the planet, and is uncompromising on promoting and protecting rights for LGBTIQ people.”
Davy’s position on the Stonewall Equality Manifesto: To download Manifesto, click here:
“I strongly support all four pillars of Stonewall’s Equality Manifesto, and view them as an essential contribution to the overall improvement in respecting the rights of LGBTIQ people and removing discrimination completely.
Statutory PSHE and Sex and Relationships Education for primary and secondary schools in England: This is perhaps the most important tool in reducing and ultimately removing discrimination against LGBTIQ people. We need to teach our children from primary age about sexuality and how diverse the population really is. Brighton and Hove City Council was named most LGB-friendly in the country by Stonewall in January, and top in Stonewall’s 2014 Education Equality Index. We would require all schools to have an anti-bullying programme that explicitly combats homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying.
Combatting homophobic, biphobic and transphobic hate crime: It’s a sad truth that many in the LGBTIQ community still experience hate crime. We as the Green Party commit to combating homophobic, biphobic and transphobic violence by ensuring uniform legislation against all forms of hate crime. I also view past “legal” hate crime as a stain on our history, and strongly support Green Party plans to apologise to and pardon the 50,000-100,000 men prosecuted unjustly under anti-gay laws.
International aid: We in the UK must support LGBTIQ rights throughout the world, and we commit to working in solidarity with campaigners challenging the criminalisation, discrimination and violence against LGBTIQ people globally. Concretely, we will also end the detention of LGBTIQ (and other) asylum seekers and the culture of disbelief that often denies them refugee status.
Reviewing the laws affecting trans people: I am proud to live in a city which has championed the rights of trans people, proud to be standing in the constituency next to Green MP Caroline Lucas’, who marched on the first ever Trans Pride in Kemptown last year. The Green-led council’s pioneering Trans Scrutiny Panel has already seen 25 of its 37 initial recommendations begin implementation. And its influence is spreading. For example, its recommendation to provide closed swimming sessions for trans people is now being taken up by other local authorities. I wholeheartedly commit to reviewing any laws affecting trans people to ensure their treatment as equal citizens with equal rights. But I go further: Inter-sex and queer people must enjoy the same protection against discrimination as trans people, and if I am elected to Parliament in May, I will be promoting this strongly.”
Davy’s position on the future Commissioning of Health Services and how that affects the Sussex Beacon:
“My position and that of the Green Party on the NHS are crystal clear: No privatisation of any part of the NHS, no place for profit in public healthcare, and return to public hands those parts which have already been sold off.
“Voluntary organisations such as the Sussex Beacon are vital to our community healthcare, and experts driven by a desire to help and to heal are infinitely better placed to offer appropriate health services than private companies answering to shareholders.
“Support to such local experts is very important. And if Sussex Beacon needs statutory financial support in the next five years, I consider it important that it gets what it needs.”
For a full list of candidates standing in Brighton Kemptown and Peacehaven, click here: