Green Party MEP aims for a seat in Parliament

THE South West Green Party MEP Molly Scott Cato is to stand as a candidate in the next general election.

Dr Scott Cato was elected to the European Parliament for a second term in May this year.

She rejected Labour criticism that she risks splitting the anti-Brexit vote and allowing a Conservative to win the seat.

“Presenting this as a key marginal is Labour-myth making,” Dr Scott Cato said.

“Labour support has plummeted, in no small part thanks to the absence of any coherent policy on Brexit. Polls indicate a decisive win for the Tory candidate unless remain voters, who form the majority in Stroud, back a genuine pro-EU candidate.

“I have a strong track record of fighting Brexit. As MEP for the region, achieving 28% of the vote in the European elections in Stroud, and as former leader of the Green group on the district council, I believe I am well placed to win here.”

Accepting the nomination, she said: “What will transform the situation at Westminster is the election of a large group of MPs determined to end the Brexit nightmare and keep us at the heart of Europe.

“I am proud that the Green Party has been clear in its opposition to Brexit.”

In last May’s European elections, the Green Party secured 28% of the vote in the South West, polling three times the Conservatives tally and more than Labour and Liberal Democrats combined.

Under the proportional representation system used in European elections, if Dr Scott Cato wins in Stroud her place in Brussels would be taken by the next person in the party list.