Dr Caroline Lucas, Green MEP for Milton Keynes and the leader of the Green Party, will be in Wolverton tomorrow evening (12 May) to outline innovative green solutions to the recession – and voice her support for the growing Transition Towns network in the region.

At a public meeting organised by Transition Town Wolverton, the high profile South East Euro-MP will propose a Green New Deal to create hundreds of thousands of green-collar jobs in emerging industries, while at the same time addressing the threat of climate change and revolutionising UK energy production.– an industry which could provide good quality jobs for skilled workers, taking full advantage of the UK’s proud manufacturing heritage, while also addressing the ever-present threat of dangerous climate change.

In the public meeting with local campaigners and residents at Wolverton Working Men’s Club, she will also highlight the positive message of the Transition Towns network, which she calls "the most exciting, most hopeful, and most inspirational green movement in Britain today" for its efforts towards weaning communities off fossil fuels.

She will say that by consuming more locally sourced food and services, and improving support for domestic producers, we can decrease our reliance upon unsustainable fossil fuels and invest in our local economies for a better future. During her visit to Milton Keynes, Dr Lucas MEP will meet business leaders and local people to discuss key concerns in the area. She will be accompanied by Alan Francis, Green Party candidate for Milton Keynes North.

Ahead of the visit, Dr Lucas MEP commented:

"In the midst of a recession and a global energy crisis, it’s crucial that we recognise the urgent need to promote green industries and secure the future of manufacturing in this country. With the necessary political will, the UK could be at the forefront of technological efforts to create a greener and more sustainable future.

"At a time when thousands of people are losing their jobs, we need coherent policy on the future of the renewable energy industry - an industry which could provide good quality jobs for skilled workers, taking full advantage of the UK’s proud manufacturing heritage, while also addressing the ever-present threat of dangerous climate change.

"We need a massive investment in the new technologies that can see us through a period of transition towards a more environmentally and economically stable economy."

She continued: "I very much look forward to meeting with Wolverton’s Transition Town project, as I believe that the TT network proposes meaningful solutions to three of the greatest challenges we face today - peak oil, food shortages and climate change. It doesn’t wait for government, politicians or corporations to act; it’s about people in their communities taking action now, and joining together to create an alternative vision of how society could be.

"Transition Towns demonstrates that the changes we urgently need to make in order to address peak oil and climate change are positive changes in themselves, allowing us not only to tackle the environmental crisis, but also to lead more fulfilling lives - through stronger local communities for example, better insulated homes, more vibrant local economies, more local production and consumption."

ENDS

The meeting is at 7.30pm, Tuesday 12th May - Wolverton Working Men’s Club, Western Road, Wolverton MK12 5BG