Fletton and Woodston ward councillor Cllr Imtiaz Ali has resigned from the Labour Party to join the Green Party group on Peterborough City Council.
In a statement, Cllr Ali said: “I will continue to serve the Fletton and Woodston ward in order to improve the lives of people of the area. I want to continue to ensure that the voices of Fletton and Woodston’s residents are heard loud and clear by the city’s administration.
“I am a resident of the ward since 2018 and have been involved in many local projects, demonstrating my absolute commitment to my local community. I will seek to continue this work beyond 2023.
“Since being elected in 2021 I have served on the Education Scrutiny Committee as well as the Audit Committee where I am currently vice-chair. I also serve on the Financial Sustainability Working Group where I support the administration in addressing concerns raised by the Improvements Panel with respect to the financial situation that we find ourselves in.
“The Green Party’s policies and values can help create fairer greener communities. I feel that Green policies align much closer to my views and I feel like a valuable member of the team working in the city’s interest with a spirit of collaboration. I am therefore delighted that the Green Party has welcomed me to join their strong team.
“We are facing some challenging times with inflation rampant and the Cost of Living Crisis affecting most of our residents, particularly families on low income. We also continue to face a worsening climate crisis and weather seems to be in the news more and more, be it local, national or international. The Green Party know that we have to tackle the cost of living crisis and the climate crisis in combination and are supportive of green initiatives that generate wealth as well as offset our carbon footprint.”
Green Group Leader, Cllr Nicola Day added: “I am delighted that Cllr Ali has chosen to join the Green Party. He feels more aligned to Green Party policies is a hard working and well repsected local councillor. He has been developing some great projects his ward on behalf of Fletton and Woodston residents which has included the planting of wildflowers, planting of a mini forest, and championing a project at the council for a solar farm. In these times of extreme climatic crisis it has never been more important to have strong Green Party Councillors in local government. I wish him a very warm welcome and our Green Party team look forward to working with him.”