Ayr by-election 2000

The Presiding Officer: Order. I am sorry, First Minister, but we are not going to have questions in the chamber about by-elections. The Official Report of the Scottish Parliament, 13 th January 2000

Greens Propose New Quality Of Life For Ayr

A press release from the Scottish Green Party

The Scottish Green Party wants to scrap outdated measures of prosperity used by the Government and replace them with new measures that truly reflect what people value. And they want Ayr to be the test-bed for this revolutionary new idea.

The Greens say that what they call the “grey” parties are obsessed with measuring prosperity according to gross domestic product (GDP). This adds up the value of everything in the local economy. The party says that a proper measure should also subtract things that are bad for people and the environment, like pollution and crime.

Gavin Corbett said:

Gross domestic product is an absurd way to tell us how well an area is doing. For example, if an oil tanker were to sink in the Firth of Clyde tomorrow the gross domestic product would rise for Ayr. This is because hotels would see extra business from all the TV crews who come to witness the disaster. Never mind the fact that the people of Ayr would have lost their beaches and would see business decline in the long term.

Talking to people in the last few weeks I know that they feel betrayed by some things that have happened in their communities. They no longer feel so happy about letting children play at the seaside or outside on the street, for example. But because these things are free they are not counted.

As MSP for Ayr I would promote the area as a test bed for a new way of measuring wellbeing. I would ask communities to decide what they thought was valuable and produde a real measure of how we are faring.

CONTACT
Gavin Corbett, 0131 337 5227 or 07980 499163
Ayr Campaign Office, 01292 283855
Robin Harper 0131 348 5927

8 th February 2000