The Green Party in the United Kingdom may refer to one or all three Green political parties in the United Kingdom:- *

Green Party of England and Wales The Green Party of England and Wales (GPEW; cy, Plaid Werdd Cymru a Lloegr, kw, Party Gwer Pow an Sowson ha Kembra, often simply the Green Party or Greens) is a green, left-wing political party in England and Wales. Since October 2021, Carla ...

; *

Scottish Greens The Scottish Greens (also known as the Scottish Green Party; gd, Pàrtaidh Uaine na h-Alba ; sco, Scots Green Pairtie) are a green political party in Scotland. The party has seven MSPs in the Scottish Parliament as of May 2021. As of the 2 ...

; and *

Green Party Northern Ireland The Green Party Northern Ireland (sometimes abbreviated as Green Party NI) is a political party in Northern Ireland. Like many green political parties around the world, its origins lie in the anti-nuclear, labour and peace movements of the 19 ...

, the Northern Ireland branch party of the Green Party (Ireland) The three Green parties are members of: *

European Green Party The European Green Party (EGP), also referred to as European Greens, is the European political party that represents national parties from across Europe who share Green values. The European Greens works closely with the Greens–European Free ...

, a federation of Green parties across more than 30 countries in Europe; and *

Global Greens The Global Greens (GG) is an international network of political parties and movements which work to implement the Global Greens Charter. It consists of various national Green political parties, partner networks, and other organizations associate ...

, an international network of Green parties who implement the

Global Greens Charter The ''Global Greens Charter'' is a document that 800 delegates from the Green parties of 72 countries decided upon a first gathering of the Global Greens in Canberra, Australia in April 2001. The first part contains six guiding principles, whereas ...

. These parties do not contest elections against each other as they only operate in the named constituent countries of the United Kingdom. Sometimes these are collectively referred to as "(The) Green Party", for example in the media and opinion polls.

History

The PEOPLE Party was founded in February 1972 by Tony and Lesley Whittaker, Freda Sanders, and Michael Benfield, a group of surveyors who were concerned about the state of economics, employment, defence, energy (fuel) supplies, land tenure, pollution and social security, as then seen within an ecological perspective. After the 1975 Conference, PEOPLE changed its name to the Ecology Party to gain more recognition as a party of environmental concern. The

Ecology Party The Green Party, also known as the Green Party UK, was a Green political party in the United Kingdom. Prior to 1985 it was called the Ecology Party, and before that PEOPLE. In 1990, it separated into three political parties: * the Green Par ...

was seen as the second step for Green politics in the United Kingdom. In 1976, the party won its first seats on

Rother District Council Rother may refer to: General *Rother (surname) (also sometimes spelled Röther) *Rother District, a local government district in East Sussex, England *Rother FM, an independent local radio station for Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England *Rother Kup ...

, East Sussex, and on Kempsey Parish Council, Hereford &

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engla ...

. Jonathan Tyler was elected Chairman of the Ecology Party that same year, and both Tony and Lesley Whittaker took a step back from active involvement in the party. The 1977 Party Conference saw Jonathan Porritt elected to its National Executive Committee. In the 1979 and 1983 General Elections, membership and recognition of the Ecology Party greatly increased. By July 1980, consensus in the Ecology Party was focusing towards decentralisation and non-violent direct action. Following the success of the

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties Fo ...

in the UK and Die Grunen in Germany, the Ecology Party resolved to change its name to the Green Party. The

Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence. Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundation f ...

of the United Kingdom was founded in June 1985. The party had increased success in the 1987 general election. In 1990, the Scottish and Northern Irish branches of the Green Party voted to break away and form their own parties, citing differences in opinion on party policy and the growing support for Scottish independence. The remainder of the Green Party became the Green Party of England & Wales, of which the

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

and

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

branches operate with a degree of autonomy. In 2006, the Green Party of Northern Ireland resolved to amalgamate with, and become a branch of, the Green Party of Ireland. In July 2018, the

Wales Green Party The Wales Green Party ( cy, Plaid Werdd Cymru) is a semi-autonomous political party within the Green Party of England and Wales (GPEW). It covers Wales, and is the only regional party with semi-autonomous status within the GPEW. The Wales Green ...

held a vote to decide on whether or not to separate from the Green Party of England & Wales and become a separate party. Of those who voted, 65% voted in favour of the status quo. All three Green parties used to be members of the Greens-European Free Alliance from its inception until the United Kingdom's departure from the European Union in 2021. The Greens/EFA is the political grouping in the European Parliament, comprising Green and regionalist parties from across the member states.

History

See also