Green Party manifesto: Ulez and Airbnb clampdown in election pledges

The Greens, currently the council's biggest party, have made a series of commitments to residents set to vote this May.

Ahead of the election, here are some of the key points they are promising if they keep hold of the council.

A London-style Ulez zone

As part of a commitment to improve air quality, the Greens have proposed an extension of the current Ultra Low Emissions Zone.

The new London-style zone would involve motorists paying to enter the catchment area, similar to other congestion charges in other cities.

Buses in Brighton

Deputy council leader Hannah Allbrooke, standing in the Brunswick and Adelaide ward, previously pointed to poor air quality on roads such as North Street, adding that the commitment would help make streets safer.

Changes to waste collection and recycling

Another pledge is to “expand opportunities for resident to recycle”.

Changes to collections would see recycling move to a weekly basis, while general waste would be removed fortnightly.

A new food waste collection service would be introduced.

Airbnb clampdown

The Greens are planning to target holiday lets as part of a clampdown on the number of Airbnbs in the city.

The party would seek new powers to target and regulate second homes in the city.

Houses in Brighton

Further regulation would include increasing council tax on the properties.

New licensing scheme for landlords

As part of a crackdown on rogue landlords, the Green Party would introduce a licensing scheme for better control of the private sector.

The scheme would mainly be targeted at private rented properties in Brighton and Hove. A similar licensing scheme would also target houses of multiple occupation (HMOs).

The Green Party would develop a private rented sector strategy in a bid to improve standards as well as grant opportunities to low-income households.

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Liveable Neighbourhoods extended across the city

Liveable Neighbourhood schemes have been proposed across several sites in Brighton and Hove, most notably in the ward of Hanover and Tarner.

Under a Green council, these schemes would be extended across the city to other wards.

According to the manifesto, this would involve “more green spaces, wider footpaths, bike parking and placemaking features”.

New sports centre to replace the King Alfred

The Argus recently reported on plans for a £50 million replacement sports centre which would be built in place of the current King Alfred Leisure Centre in Hove.

Now, the Greens have added this to their list of commitments, calling for a new centre in the west of the city.

King Alfred Leisure Centre (Image: The Argus)

The party said this will “end the long delays in redeveloping” the current building.

Easier walking and cycling in the city

Another commitment is “continuing to rollout” improvements to make it easier to walk and cycle in Brighton and Hove.

The Green Party pointed to improvement works in Western Road as one of the plans coming under this banner.

Brighton and Hove City Council recently rolled out a Beryl e-bike scheme which replaces the previous cycle sharing scheme in the city.

Other plans include more pedestrian crossings.

Homelessness prevention schemes

Tackling homelessness in Brighton has been highlighted as one of the plans in the Green manifesto. The Argus reported this week that 43 people died while homeless in 2022.

As part of efforts to tackle the problem in Brighton, the party would “expand homelessness prevention through early intervention”.

This would include more “housing first” placements in the city to help people out of homelessness.

Commitments to renewable energy

As part of their commitment to sustainable energy sources, the Greens would “apply green energy solutions” to the city.

This would include building a solar farm near the city which would maximise the use of solar power according, to the manifesto.

Other measures under this umbrella are developing new buildings using a zero or negative carbon policy where possible.

The council has pledged to develop 800 new affordable homes by 2028 which would be designed to be energy efficient and use natural, carbon storing materials.

Better bicycle parking for residents

A recent addition to Brighton and Hove is the new cycle hangar scheme which provides on-street bicycle parking.

Now, after the success of the programme, the Green Party are looking to expand the scheme.

This would include “safe, secure, large scale cycle parking in the city centre”, although it is unclear what form this would take.

Brighton and Hove residents will go to the polls on Thursday, March 4, in elections for the council. Votes will be counted and announced on May 5.