Now at 115,000 members and in some polls level with Labour in terms of public support, CHRIS JARVIS looks at the factors behind the rapid rise of the Greens, internal and external

SINCE becoming seriously disabled with spinal cord injuries, my heroes are the armies of care workers who visit my home and the homes of many other people who are frailer than me, the elderly and those suffering from conditions like dementia or Parkinson’s Disease.
This low-paid and often undervalued body of staff helps the NHS by keeping individuals at home.
They often don’t know what they are going to face when opening the door, from changing someone who is wet, who will require a shower and their bedclothes changing and washing, to feeding, giving medication and shopping for clients or taking decisions as to whether it is still safe for the individual to remain at home.

GEOFF BOTTOMS, who has worked in a palliative care hospice for 11 years, argues the postcode lottery for proper end-of-life care must be ended to give the terminally ill choice and agency


