Ruskell champions local credit unions over big banks Scottish Green Party Westminster candidate Mark Ruskell has highlighted the role of local credit unions in re-building the banking sector, as Robin Harper - the UK's first Green parliamentarian - visited Stirling on Saturday 10. April to support the local election campaign. Read more... Stirling and Clackmannanshire Greens Weapons of mass destruction on our roads Have you seen any nuclear weapons convoys passing through Stirling? Please let us know! For more information, please read our blog. Our campaign to end the transportation of WMDs through the Stirling area has also been reported in the Stirling Observer. If you agree that hauling nuclear weapons through Stirling and along our country roads is an unacceptable risk to public safety, please make your voice heard and get in touch. Energy efficiency At the end of 2008 the Scottish Green Party launched its Warm Scotland campaign to reduce fuel poverty by providing free insulation for every home in Scotland. Almost a quarter of Scottish households now spend over 10% of their income on keeping their homes warm, and improved energy efficiency is essential. In July 2009, Stirling was chosen as one of the first areas to benefit from the Scottish Government's home insulation scheme. This was hailed as an "excellent initiative", yet as we have argued, the SNP have delivered a shamefully disappointing scheme that falls well short of what could have been achieved with the Greens' proposals. We will continue to make the case that householders in the Stirling area deserve a better insulation programme than the unambitious and ineffective plans the SNP have put forward. Other campaigns... In recent years we have also campaigned to save the Park of Keir and the Stirling University Post Office, while our focus for the last year's Bannockburn by-election was a new railway station and an affordable, reliable local transport system. We have produced a couple of local newsletters which you can still download. We are particularly pleased to report that an article on peak oil and "Transition Towns" was the catalyst for Sustainable Dunblane, a community-led initiative aimed at reducing the cathedral city's carbon footprint and its dependence on fossil fuels. The early successes of this project are entirely due to the commitment and hard work of an enthusiastic group of volunteers, but we're happy to have provided the initial inspiration! The Kildean link road The Greens in Stirling and Clackmannanshire have also taken action on proposals for the A84 Kildean - A9 Stirling University link road. Residents in Cornton and Bridge of Allan feel that if this road were to be built, it would ultimately increase congestion and open up a large area of greenbelt for housing development. We also believe that the road would be an expensive mistake. Efforts to relieve congestion in Stirling should instead concentrate on affordable, reliable public transport and safer cycling routes.  During our campaign we have insisted that Labour and SNP councillors - who expressed their opposition to the proposals during the 2007 council elections - listen to the concerns of their constituents by making public transport the funding priority, not road building. In 2009 we produced a short film showing how this area is prone to flooding and is therefore unsuitable for development. Campaign news Stirling and Clackmannanshire figures show failure of SNP insulation scheme Research by the Scottish Greens published yesterday showed the extent to which the SNP's means-tested Home Insulation Scheme has failed in Stirling and Clackmannanshire. Read more... Ruskell proposes Gillies Hill law change Doune-based former Green MSP Mark Ruskell, standing for Holyrood again as the Greens' top candidate for Mid Scotland and Fife, has pledged to pursue a legal change in Parliament which could spell the end for plans to destroy Stirling’s precious Gillies Hill area for quarrying. Read more... Green plan could help Dunblane high street regeneration and reduce need for council cuts The Scottish Green Party is calling for exemptions from the non-domestic rates regime for empty business premises in Scotland to be restricted. Read more... Greens resist cuts to rail freight grant Scottish Greens joined forces with Labour in the Scottish Parliament to press SNP Ministers to abandon their plans to scrap the £7m Freight Facilities Grant, a scheme which has underpinned moves to take goods by rail instead of road. Read more... Ruskell promotes progressive policies Scottish Green Party general election candidate Mark Ruskell has highlighted the key demands for a fairer society that Green MPs will take to Westminster, including raising the basic state pension to £170 per week. Read more... Greens promise local energy revolution Scottish Green Party co-convenor Patrick Harvie MSP and Mark Ruskell, the Greens' general election candidate for the Stirling constituency visited renewable energy businesses and a community project on Monday to highlight the support needed to create local jobs, lower energy bills and tackle climate change Read more...