Choose a Greener Scotland at ballot box on Thursday - Lorna Slater
On Thursday people across Scotland will make a choice that will shape the direction of our country for years. Elections are always important, but this one carries particular weight at a time when the pressures on our public services, climate and communities demand bold, hopeful leadership.
Over the past parliamentary session, the Scottish Greens have shown what that kind of leadership looks like. By entering government for the first time anywhere in the UK, we turned Green ideas into real change.
We delivered free bus travel for under 22s, making it easier for young people to access education, work and opportunity. We secured major investment in energy efficiency, helping households cut bills while reducing emissions. We pushed forward action on tenants’ rights, ensuring more people have security in their homes.
These are not abstract achievements. They are policies that have made daily life fairer, greener and more affordable for thousands of people. But there is so much more still to do. The climate crisis has not gone away; inequality continues to hold too many people back and the cost of living is still biting hard for families across Edinburgh and beyond.
Electing more Scottish Green MSPs on Thursday would mean going further and faster. It would mean expanding free public transport to more people, investing in warm homes to bring down energy bills permanently and creating a wellbeing economy that puts people and planet before short-term profit.
It would mean stronger action for renters, providing real free and affordable options on childcare to keep money in families’ pockets and a firm commitment to tackling the climate emergency with the urgency it demands.
Scotland’s voting system gives everyone two votes and both matter. The regional list vote, on the peach ballot paper, is where Green MSPs are elected. It is the vote that ensures Parliament reflects the full range of voices across our country, not just the largest parties. A vote for the Scottish Greens on the list is the most effective way to return a strong group of Green MSPs ready to deliver.
And in Edinburgh Central, I’m seeking your support to keep representing our communities and championing climate action, social justice and a fairer future. We have a genuine opportunity to elect a Scottish Greens MSP in a constituency for the first time, and I’m asking you to place your trust in that possibility.
This Thursday is a chance to build on progress, not lose it. A chance to choose cooperation over division, ambition over complacency. With your support, we can keep moving Scotland forward but together we must demand better.