Mayoral candidate says region can be 'green economic powerhouse'
The Green Party has named its candidate for West Midlands Mayor.
Solihull councillor Steve Caudwell says he wants the region to become a "green economic powerhouse" by cutting carbon pollution by 2030.
He has also pledged to improve the public transport network and tackle social issues including child poverty.
Mr Caudwell is the opposition leader on Solihull Council and represents Castle Bromwich. He stood as the Green candidate for Meriden in the 2019 general election, coming last with 4.9 per cent of the vote.
He said: "The Midlands is the beating heart of Britain’s manufacturing economy, we’re a region with so much potential - but it’s clearer than ever that the current leadership is failing to tackle the big problems of our time.
"When it comes to cutting carbon pollution, the science is clear that we must have ‘balanced our books’ by 2030 to avoid the worst consequences of the climate emergency; but the current Mayor Andy Street insists on working to a leisurely timeline that will see us achieve this eleven years’ late - and it’s not even clear that we’re on schedule to hit that date.
"As Mayor, I will bring in the 2030 target we need to have a chance of avoiding the massive disruption to our way of life that’s heading toward us.
“The need to meet 2030 is also a massive opportunity for our region to become a Green economic powerhouse. A genuinely Green Industrial Revolution can bring our poorest out of poverty, but only if we take the problem seriously.
“And we won’t meet 2030 without a public transport network we can actually use - we hear a lot of promises and plans from Andy Street but we don’t see action. I will deliver the integrated system we all need to help us leave the car at home.”
Mr Caudwell, who works as a major project delivery specialist, will face Conservative incumbent Mr Street in May's election. Other candidates are Jenny Wilkinson for the Lib Dems and Labour MP Liam Byrne.
