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Patrick McAllister 🌱

@patdbmcallister.bsky.social

Green Party councillor for Hotwells & Harbourside | Fan of cycling + circular economies | Views my own | Sign up to my e-news at https://tinyurl.com/PatricksENews. Promoted by Patrick McAllister (Bristol Green Party) at 17 Great George St, Bristol BS1 5QT.

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Patrick McAllister 🌱@patdbmcallister.bsky.social · 4w ago

The right decision from my party, given the below - there is no purpose in us playing into Farage's self-indulgent stunt. Looking forward to Count Binface taking out the trash. bsky.app/profile/gree... "We won't be standing a candidate in the by-election" - Hannah Spencer.

Patrick McAllister 🌱@patdbmcallister.bsky.social · 4w ago

Theory: Farage *wants to lose* his by-election. He clearly doesn't like being an MP. If he'd just resigned he'd clearly be running from scrutiny. But *losing* means leaving with his head held high claiming "establishment stitch-up", and he can keep grifting from the sidelines with no scrutiny.

Patrick McAllister 🌱@patdbmcallister.bsky.social · 4w ago

Theory: Farage *wants to lose* his by-election. He clearly doesn't like being an MP. If he'd just resigned he'd clearly be running from scrutiny. But *losing* means leaving with his head held high claiming "establishment stitch-up", and he can keep grifting from the sidelines with no scrutiny.

Nigel Farage resigns as MP for Clacton, triggering by-election which he says he will stand in

The Reform UK leader's statement follows reports he failed to declare financial support from an ally. He has also faced questions over an unregistered £5m gift from a donor.

bbc.co.uk

Patrick McAllister 🌱@patdbmcallister.bsky.social · 4w ago

A great article from Tom Woolmore in Verdant about Green Party defence policy. "Progressives absolutely can and must have the difficult discussions required in these times of global instability, and we are entirely capable of coming up with the robust answers this country desperately needs."

Beyond 'Increase Defence Spending': A Progressive Case for Security — Verdant

Guest blog by Tom Woolmore (Centre for Statecraft and National Security)

verdantthinking.org

Patrick McAllister 🌱@patdbmcallister.bsky.social · last mo.

Matt Badlose can get stuffed with this racist, ignorant hate. Yassin works incredibly hard representing one of the UK's most deprived wards; now as Lord Mayor he upholds Bristol's values of unity, respect and inclusion. I'm proud to call him a colleague and friend.

A Facebook post from Matt Goodwin reading: The new Lord Mayor of Bristol was a Somali REFUGEE. Yassin Mohamud said that “unity was his biggest priority,” according to the BBC. He was sworn into office this May. This is the state of Britain in 2026. We should NOT have former refugees running our cities. There is a photo of Yassin in his official regalia.
Patrick McAllister 🌱@patdbmcallister.bsky.social · last mo.

I've been pushing for this recently in Bristol - it's a no brainer I think to use otherwise unproductive space for solar generation.

Bylines Network@bylinesnetwork.co.uk · last mo.

As Britain swelters through another heatwave, few people will have heard that ministers have quietly dropped plans for solar carports. Cars cooler in summer. Shelter from the rain in winter. Clean electricity all year round. A missed opportunity? @eastangliabylines.co.uk

Patrick McAllister 🌱@patdbmcallister.bsky.social · last mo.

I'm extremely pleased to see these protective bollards being installed outside the Merchants Arms, helping to protect the pub, surrounding buildings and pedestrians from further crashes. I'm really glad to have helped make this happen, and thanks to transport officers and @edplowden.bsky.social!

Patrick smiling with the bollards and pub in the background.A view of the bollards from across the road.
Patrick McAllister 🌱@patdbmcallister.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Today I and Transport Chair Cllr @edplowden.bsky.social visited the Merchants Arms to discuss the crash and potential safety improvements for the local area. It was a productive meeting and I look forward to the outcomes in the near future. Thank you to the pub team for hosting us!

lex luddy@lexluddy.xyz · 2mo ago

Mandatory age verification and the banning modern public towns squares for young people is, and forever will be, governmental and societal abdication of responsibility so that those in charge don't actually have to dare hold big tech accountable for the very real public harm they can foster.

Elizabeth Taylor@elizabethtaylor47.bsky.social · 2mo ago

The only conviction Keir Starmer and indeed his cabinet and senior Labour figures around him is to restrict personal liberty. It’s the one consistent through line in absolutely everything they do.

Dan Sohege@danielsohege.bsky.social · 2mo ago

This is nuts. Yes we need better protections online, but this is a massive overreach by Starmer. For many young people, especially marginalised ones such as trans and neurodivergent, online spaces can be a safe place for them to develop a genuine support community www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...

Patrick McAllister 🌱@patdbmcallister.bsky.social · 2mo ago

The Government's own advisors say the triple lock is unsustainable + unfair. Young people who sacrificed during lockdown to keep older people safe can't get work. Infrastructure and services are failing, and we need more £ for defence. So let's give the wealthiest generation in history more cash...

Andy Burnham: I’ll keep the triple lock, and give pensioners a tax cut

The Greater Manchester Mayor tells The i Paper that ripping up Labour's manifesto commitment would be 'very damaging' despite calls for it to be ditched

inews.co.uk

Caroline Russell@carolinerussell.bsky.social · 2mo ago

I've written to Health Secretary James Murray urging him to oppose the EHRC Code of Practice for services and associations before it comes into force. With Trans+ people facing rising hostility, ministers should be standing up for equality and everyone’s right to participate fully in public life. 🏳️‍⚧️

Letter to Health Secretary Dear James, Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) Code of Practice for service providers, public functions and associations I am writing following your comments on the Today Programme last week. During the interview you stated that you had “changed your mind” and would no longer use the phrase “Trans women are women.” I am deeply troubled both by the timing of this public statement and by the message you are sending. As the minister responsible for policies affecting the healthcare and social care of Trans+ people, your words carry far more weight than a private opinion. By publicly rejecting language that Trans women use for themselves, many Trans girls and women will understandably hear you, as the minister responsible for their care, describing them as boys and men. Your statement is not a neutral one. It is a deliberate choice made from a position of authority by someone with direct influence over the lives of Trans+ people. The issue is therefore not simply what you believe, but what your words signal and enable. When a senior minister publicly withdraws recognition from a marginalised group, it risks legitimising exclusion, emboldening prejudice, and undermining confidence that public institutions will treat that group with dignity and fairness. The impact of your words extends beyond Trans women and girls to the wider Trans+ community, many of whom will see your remarks as a signal that the government is unwilling to recognise and respect them. Your statement comes at a time when many Trans+ people across the UK are already frightened and overwhelmed by the relentless politicisation of their lives and thecontinual questioning of their place in society by those in positions of power. In that context, your remarks do not exist in isolation; they add to an increasingly hostile environment in which Trans+ people are made to feel that they, and their participation in society, is open to debate and that their dignity and rights are contingent on political approval by ministers who reject who they know themselves to be. The EHRC Code of Practice for service providers and associations was laid before Parliament by the Minister for Women and Equalities on 21 May and will become statutory on 30 June unless Parliament rejects it. I urge you to use your position within the government to oppose the Code and support its rejection. I am writing to you not only as a London Assembly Member, but on behalf of constituents who have contacted me in genuine fear and distress about what this guidance would mean for their lives. The potential scale of exclusion is extraordinary. The government's own Equality Impact Assessment admits that it would have wide-ranging negative impacts on Trans people and that Trans women could face a "disproportionate risk of violence and sexual assault" in some circumstances. Even with this admission, the Government appears determined to press ahead. This comes at a time when Trans and gender diverse people face growing hostility. Many Trans+ people already avoid accessing healthcare, participating in sport, or engaging in public life because they fear discrimination and exclusion as well as harassment or violence. In London, transphobic hate crimes have more than doubled over the past five years one in four Trans people have experienced homelessness at some point in their lives and Transgender adults are also twice as likely to be unemployed as cisgender adults. 48 per cent of Trans adults have attempted suicide , while poor experiences within the healthcare system have led 57 per cent of Trans people to avoid seeking medical help even when they ar…The guidance also normalises exclusion and encourages a culture of gender policing by asking people to make judgments about who can use which services based on physical appearance. The consequences of this will not be limited to Trans people, both cisgender and Transgender people may also face exclusion based on how others perceive them. As an elected London representative, I am particularly concerned because London has the highest proportion of people in England whose gender identity differs from their sex recorded at birth. These are people in our community, work colleagues, friends and family members, who should be able to participate in public life without fear. When Labour introduced the Gender Recognition Act in 2004, it promised Trans people the right to live with dignity. The updated EHRC Code of Practice for service providers and associations represents a complete rollback of that promise. This is about Trans people's right to exist in society free from abuse, discrimination, and segregation, with the autonomy to be who they know themselves to be. I urge you not to support this guidance and to speak out against it publicly. Yours sincerely, Caroline Russell Green Party Member of the London Assembly
Patrick McAllister 🌱@patdbmcallister.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Ensuring the defence of the realm is the foremost duty of any government. In today's world, Starmer and Reeves blocking the funding that the military needs after years of austerity is short-termism at its finest. Respect to John Healey for standing up for his principles.

Defence Secretary John Healey resigns over military spending plans

In a letter to the prime minister, he says the defence investment plan "does not give our forces the resources they need".

bbc.co.uk

Rob Bryher@robbryher.bsky.social · 2mo ago

What's this? Someone who is arriving at the conclusion that LTNs (low-traffic neighbourhoods) may be the answer to urban development pressures...NO, they couldn't possibly be!

Melissa & Chris Bruntlett@modacitylife.com · 2mo ago

Beginning as a pop-up pandemic-era intervention in the summer of 2021, Bristol's bustling Princess Victoria Street emerged as a permanent pedestrian space within four years; offering a compelling case of how such measures can reshape public opinion, local economies, and the future of urban streets.🧵

People walk and sit along a pedestrianised shopping street in the centre of Bristol, featuring terraces, trees, planter boxes, bike parking, and advertising boards.People walk and sit along a pedestrianised shopping street in the centre of Bristol, featuring terraces, trees, planter boxes, bike parking, and advertising boards.People walk and sit along a pedestrianised shopping street in the centre of Bristol, featuring terraces, trees, planter boxes, bike parking, and advertising boards.People walk and sit along a pedestrianised shopping street in the centre of Bristol, featuring terraces, trees, planter boxes, bike parking, and advertising boards.
Sian Berry MP@sianberry.bsky.social · 2mo ago

I have written to the Prime Minister and Bridget Phillipson, calling for the cruel and confusing EHRC Code of Practice to be rejected. Legislative action must be taken to create an equalities framework that protects trans people’s safety, dignity and humanity.

Image is a letter. It reads: Dear Keir and Bridget, Reject the EHRC’s Code of Practice I am writing as Interim Women and Equalities lead of the Parliamentary Green Party to raise serious concerns over proposed guidance from the Equality and Human Rights Commission, which is not fit for purpose and will harm trans people living in the UK. The Code of Practice for services, public functions, and associations is the culmination of years of well-funded campaigns to drive a minority group out of British public life. It sets out a system of segregation where trans people are excluded from services and spaces that reflect their gender, and in some cases also excluded from services and spaces that reflect their sex assigned at birth. Where unisex facilities exist, trans people will be forced into them. Where they do not exist, trans people will be left with nowhere to go. Your own Equalities Impact Assessment1 on the code admits there will be a significant impact on those with the protected characteristic of gender reassignment - from forcing trans people to out themselves by using disabled toilets to putting trans women at greater risk of sexual violence by making them use men’s services. The Code of Practice is both cruel and confusing. Inconsistencies between the Code of Practice and its Equalities Impact Assessment, the Gender Recognition Act and the European Convention on Human Rights will leave organisations and service providers at risk of litigation from all sides. Frontline staff in spaces like cafes, gyms, and offices will be forced to police gender, whilst the costs of creating self-contained gender neutral facilities are estimated by your advisors as reaching £600m, which the government is providing no funding to cover.2 I am pleased to see associations, like the Women’s Institute and Girlguiding, given a potential route to serving trans and cisgender women, but this does not counteract the pain caused by the majority of the guidance. Letter continued: By enacting this guidance, trans people will simply be scapegoated. Research by Translucent found there was just one complaint to English Unitary Authorities in 2025 concerning trans women’s use of single-sex spaces, such as toilets and changing rooms.3 By refusing to act, your government is once again playing politics with trans people’s lives, rather than tackling real problems, like the soaring cost of living, rising inequality and the ongoing climate crisis. Trans people of all ages and backgrounds exist in communities across the country - and always have. They have every right to thrive just as their cisgender friends, family members, and colleagues do. When Labour brought in the Gender Recognition Act in 2004 it promised trans people they could live their lives with peace, privacy, and dignity. Now you are breaking that promise. I believe there is a real risk of trans people being essentially segregated from public spaces. I urge you to withdraw the code and take legislative action to create an equalities framework that protects trans people’s safety, dignity and humanity.
Patrick McAllister 🌱@patdbmcallister.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Thank you @carladenyer.bsky.social for lobbying the Government on business rates, which are at risk of devastating our high streets. I was pleased to support the letter as a Bristol Central councillor with many small businesses in my ward who are struggling with the rise in business rates.

Business rates rise 'stands to finally put many out of business completely'

Bristol MP Carla Denyer says small businesses need government support to survive

bristol247.com

Katie Fenn@katiefenn.bsky.social · 3mo ago

“Reasons for things going wrong [include] successive government commissioned reviews, changing objectives and political priorities” - BBC News “Anyway, here’s another change to the specification and the political priorities” - the Labour Government

Gareth Dennis@garethdennis.uk · 3mo ago

Today, the DfT announced its marvellous, magical changes to HS2 to save costs. These changes are: ⭕ Reduce the maximum speed from 360 to 320 km/h 🤖 Remove Automatic Train Operation (ATO) 🚦 Reduce the signalling system (ETCS) specification This will save 2% off HS2's capex. Good idea?

Proposed Changes 7. The assessment proposes the following package of changes: a. Reduce the maximum line speed from 360kph to 320 kph. 360kph is faster than any current railway globally. 320kph represents a standard ‘new build’ maximum operating speed in Europe. b. Remove Automatic Train Operation (ATO) – ATO would be a global first-of-a-kind train control and signalling system for a high-speed railway, introducing novelty that would require extensive proving. No other European railways are actively pursuing ATO for their high-speed lines and it is not needed to deliver the requirement of 10 trains per hour (tph). c. Reduce the signalling system (ETCS) specification – Without the requirement for ATO it is possible to adopt a proven ETCS version (v2.1) to align with other UK and European projects, including the live delivery programmes; Transpennine Route Upgrade and East Coast Digital Project. 8. These three elements of the current HS2 specification drive significant cost, time and risk into the HS2 programme. Given the advanced nature of the design and build of the civils programme between Birmingham and London HS2 programme it will continue to be built. The changes outlined here reflect the biggest opportunities to reduce complexity and improve confidence in delivering HS2. If these changes are not implemented, proving the railway operation at 360kph could take significant time and money and potentially result in a later decision to change the scope.
Adam Turner 🏳️‍🌈@awjt.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Our dependence on aviation fuel, and consequent pandering to Russia, has become horribly apparent in the same week that HS2 has been value-engineered yet again. This includes a reduction of the trains' speed, which in turn will reduce the shift of passengers from air to rail. Spreadsheet stupidity.

Sam Alvis@samalvis.bsky.social · 3mo ago

The removal of Russian sanctions is shameful. Govt knows this and trying to find a scapegoat. But the idea that the North Sea could ever plug a gap in jet fuel and diesel supplies, let alone plug a gap NOW is unhinged and uninformed www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/ideas/techno...

Patrick McAllister 🌱@patdbmcallister.bsky.social · 3mo ago

I was pleased to convene a meeting between Young Bristol and the Bristol Harbour team recently, to go through Young Bristol's exciting plans for improving their Pooles Wharf site. It was a successful, productive meeting; I look forward to supporting Young Bristol further as their plans progress.

Patrick with members of the Young Bristol team outside their Harbour premises.
Patrick McAllister 🌱@patdbmcallister.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Today I and Transport Chair Cllr @edplowden.bsky.social visited the Merchants Arms to discuss the crash and potential safety improvements for the local area. It was a productive meeting and I look forward to the outcomes in the near future. Thank you to the pub team for hosting us!

Cllr Ed Plowden, Chair of the Transport and Connectivity committee (L) would Patrick (R) and the Merchants Arms team outside the front of the pub's boarded up front wall.
Patrick McAllister 🌱@patdbmcallister.bsky.social · 4mo ago

I am upset and angry at another serious car crash in Hotwells. The front of the Merchants Arms pub has been caved in. I was informed that there are injuries but no fatalities. This is exactly why our administration is bringing in 20mph limits - we need them.

The car at the scene of the crash.
Patrick McAllister 🌱@patdbmcallister.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Congratulations @jamesthorniley.bsky.social! I'm familiar with how nailbiting a 26 vote margin is at the count... Well done and good luck! 💚

Oxford Clarion@oxfordclarion.bsky.social · 3mo ago

A narrow Green gain in Lye Valley: James Thorniley is the new councillor. (Seat won by Ajaz Rehman for Labour in 2022, who subsequently left and sat as an independent.) 💚 Green 500 🌹 Lab 474 ➡️ Reform 248 🔵 Con 124 🔶 LibDem 76

Cllr Emma Garnett@greenpartyemma.bsky.social · 3mo ago

I am absolutely over the moon! This was a development ward with v minimal campaigning (ie just me and @jamesthorniley.bsky.social door knocking and an amazing team of local leafletters). Greens can win anywhere. James will be a brilliant Green City Councillor. So happy, so tired.

Oxford Clarion@oxfordclarion.bsky.social · 3mo ago

A narrow Green gain in Lye Valley: James Thorniley is the new councillor. (Seat won by Ajaz Rehman for Labour in 2022, who subsequently left and sat as an independent.) 💚 Green 500 🌹 Lab 474 ➡️ Reform 248 🔵 Con 124 🔶 LibDem 76