The Green Party have launched their 2024 General Election manifesto, calling for a four-day working week and a £15 minimum wage. 

The manifesto, launched today, sets out a range of policies aimed at benefitting the environment and accelerating the transition to a net zero economy. 

Key pledges made in the manifesto relevant to local shops include: 

•    An increase in the minimum wage to £15 an hour, no matter your age, with the costs to small businesses offset by reducing their National Insurance payments.
•    Equal employment rights for all workers from their first day of employment, including those working in the ‘gig economy’ and on zero-hours contracts. 
•    A move to a four-day working week.
•    Scrap the Police, Crime Sentencing and Courts Act, the Public Order Act and other legislation that erodes the right to protest and free expression.
•    A carbon tax to drive fossil fuels out of our economy and raise money to invest in the green transition.
•    Bringing the railways, water companies and the Big 5 retail energy companies into public ownership.
•    Aligning the tax rates on investment income with the tax and National Insurance Contribution rates on employment income.
•    £2bn per year in grant funding for local authorities to help businesses decarbonise.
•    Community ownership to be encouraged through greater access to government funding in the transition to a zero-carbon economy.

Throughout the General Election campaign, ACS is encouraging retailers to make the most of the opportunity to invite prospective parliamentary candidates into store to explain the issues that are affecting their business both locally and nationally. 

ACS has put together a guide on how to run a store visit as well as a useful online tool to request a visit with candidates, all of which is available in the ACS Election Centre here.