Three of the seven Green West Midlands candidates for the EU elections live in Herefordshire. Lead candidates, Ellie Chowns and Diana Toynbee, stood for the Green Party in the 2017 General Election for the county’s two Parliamentary constituencies.

Dr Ellie Chowns teaches International Development at the University of Birmingham. A former school governor and HomeStart volunteer, she currently volunteers with ECHO Herefordshire.

Diana Toynbee has worked in education and in dementia care. She now works mostly in bereavement services, was a school governor for several years, and currently volunteers with St Michael’s Hospice and Refugee Action.

If elected on May 23rd, they would build on the current Green MEPs’ excellent track record - fighting corporate tax avoidance and pollution, tackling climate change, and campaigning for more transparent and democratic European politics.

The Green Party has led calls in Parliament for a second referendum on the question of leaving the EU. We celebrate and defend the right to free movement, and have constantly championed the rights of EU citizens in the UK and UK citizens in the EU.

Our current deal with the EU is the best we can expect, with our opt-outs, rebates, and being outside Shenghen and the euro-zone. Leaving the EU will make us worse off in many ways.

The people of Herefordshire can trust the Greens to work for voters’ interests in the European Parliament, and ensure that we retain influence in Europe should the UK decide to remain in the EU.