Natalie Bennett: No concerns over 'stolen Green policies' Louise Stewart

Political editor, South East Published duration 26 September 2015

image caption The Green Party's annual gathering in Bournemouth could be Natalie Bennett's final conference as leader

Brighton and Hove made history in 2011 when it became the first council in the UK to be Green-led.

However, the party lost control of the council at the May local elections and failed to make any gains at the General Election, and Caroline Lucas in Brighton Pavilion remains its only MP.

The Green Party, like UKIP, has a solitary MP and a leader who does not have a seat at Westminster.

Leader Natalie Bennett may not enjoy the same level of media attention as UKIP's Nigel Farage but there is no doubt the two parties both suffered at the General Election because of the UK's first-past-the-post system, which favours the traditional main parties.

Natalie Bennett said the "Green surge" at the last general election - which saw her party garner 1.1m votes - would have seen 25 Green MPs elected under proportional representation.

In the end the party only retained its one existing MP and lost control of Brighton and Hove City Council.

'Stolen policies'

Asked whether the failure to hold on to the council as a laboratory for Green policy/practice was her biggest failure as leader, Ms Bennett defended the council's record saying it had done its best "under the heel of Conservative austerity".

So, with Labour moving to the left under Jeremy Corbyn is she worried that Labour would take over some of her political ground?

Ms Bennett said she had no concern the Greens would haemorrhage support to Corbyn, insisting she did not mind if other parties "stole her policies".

She also said plenty of other Green policies had been adopted by other parties (ie. the living wage) and instead said it proved her party and its ideas were gaining currency.

The party's annual gathering in Bournemouth could be her final conference as leader.

Her tenure at the top expires next year - she would not though be drawn as to whether she would seek re-election.

The Green Party conference is being held in Bournemouth between 25 and 28 September.