THE SECOND GREEN Party hustings got underway today as leadership contenders Roderic O’Gorman and Pippa Hackett continued to press their cases for replacing outgoing party leader Eamon Ryan.
O’Gorman, the Minister for Integration and Children, and Senator Hackett took part in a debate online this afternoon.
“Out of touch, preachy” and “Dublin-centric”, was how Hackett opened her remarks today, referring to impressions of the Green Party among the public.
She said these were “lazy characterisations” and not accurate but that the perception exists and needs to change.
“We have to get back to the people and resolve their specific worries and concerns,” she said, promising to “rebuild bridges”.
She said the party needs to “listen, invest in and deliver for communities”, saying that “relatability is key”.
O’Gorman said the party membership was “confident” and “keen to get stuck into policy detail”.
“The stakes really couldn’t he higher,” he said, referring to the Green Party in Ireland and in the EU.
“I’m not willing to accept defeat or manage decline,” he said, arguing that the party cannot retreat and be reconciled to its current position in opinion polls.
He focused on issues beyond green policies, mentioning housing in particular.
He touted his campaigning experience and argued for the use of more data and training for members in order to bolster future campaigns.
“We have to deliver in these last months of government,” he said, listing off the various successes the party has had while in power.
“I’ve been public enemy number one for the far right,” he said, adding that he isn’t easily phased. Both candidates recognised the rise of protests and criticism against progressive issues and said it needs to be addressed through outreach and clarity of communication.
Hackett argued that maintaining core principles of the Green Party was the central focus of her campaign, referencing successes and ongoing measures put in place by the Greens in government.
But she added that “this won’t work if it’s not socially just” and “we don’t bring people along with us”.
“I joined the party for nature but I stayed for social justice,” O’Gorman said, noting he took on a ministry that is not typically connected to the green agenda.
Both candidates answered questions sent in by members of the Green Party during a debate hosted online.
O’Gorman was asked about the future of the Greens over the next five years,
He said he wants to grow representation in the Dáil and get more local councillors and MEPs elected. This would be done through broadening the party’s “wider policy issues”, especially social policies.
He also said he’d like to see the Greens represented in the Northern Ireland Assembly again.
Hackett said she wants the party being “relevant to people’s lives” at all levels of government.
“Green parties across Europe should always try to get into government,” she said, though “not at any cost”.
Hackett said she wanted to focus on people rather than policy.
Hackett said the Greens “have to bring farmers on board”.
She said that alternative energy like solar panels should be more affordable. She said she would like to explore the idea of caps on the prices of those kinds of measures.
O’Gorman said he has met people who cannot afford to make energy-saving changes in their homes despite government grants on offer.
He said the measures need more investment and reduce bureaucracy in applying for grants.
He said farmers need to be incentivised to take part in nature restoration projects.
The candidates were asked if they should focus on confrontations with political opponents in the headlines or make sure they keep people happy enough to get their second and third preference votes.
O’Gorman said a bit of both was the way to go, while stressing that first preference votes are still key and noting that transfers hadn’t come their way in the local and EU elections.
Hackett argued that the Green Party needs to “stand out” and be “relevant”, while making sure people understand what the party is doing for them.
She said she was “all for” some headlines that grab attention but also said that standing by green principals in negotiations with other parties was still a must.
Hackett touted the increase in organic farming in Ireland, saying it “needs to keep growing”.
She said farmer respond best when they hear arguments “from their peers”, rather than departments and ministers.
She listed ways she has engaged with farmers through pilot programmes that have built “a bit of trust”, while admitting that “they mistrust us” and that needs to change.
O’Gorman said Hackett has done important work in this area.
“I think we have to try and put ourselves more in the position of farmers, who have been under pressure,” he said.
“There a lot of changes happening,” he said while adding that the party needs to work with farmers and make new policies attractive through financial incentives and “clear income pathways”.
O’Gorman pointed to government policies that have attempted to address cost of living pressures, but said they were one-off measures which will not be enough long term.
He touted cuts to public transport costs, especially for young adults.
Initiatives that provide “broad-based” supports for people to make life more affordable.
He said retrofitting homes was also part of the equation and that it needs to be cheaper.
Hackett echoed O’Gorman’s comments on one-off versus long-term measures.
She said that support measures need to be “medium to long-term” and that “even more retrofitting” and rolling out more solar panels would be examples of this.
Hackett said that debunking was not the way to go because “we’ve been doing that” and “it’s not really translating”.
“It’s been there for a while,” she said about misinformation, but added that it seems to have grown since the Greens got into government.
She said that the Greens have “very negative” image as a result but that reassuring people and making sure they see the changes the party has made.
O’Gorman said misinformation was always going to grow once the Greens came into power.
Ryanair would be targeting Eamon Ryan and the Green Party if they didn’t see them as a threat, he said.
He said the party needs to be able to counter false narratives and fight against “incorrect narratives” on social media more effectively.
Hackett said “we need to stop telling people they can’t burn turf” but rather incentivise them to move away from it. “But we won’t be forcing you to do it,” she added.
“It’s just about how we position any schemes, so we’re saying, ‘It’s up to you’”.
O’Gorman said he would listen to party member “like Pippa”, who come from areas where turf cutting is a tradition.
He said the issue comes up in Dublin too, among those with connections to those areas.
“We have to be careful in how we speak to these cultural issues,” he said but added that arguments regarding health were a good way to go, pointing to the success of the smoking ban.
Ahead of today’s hustings, the two candidates spoke to The Journal about their visions for the direction of the party.
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