Are you a local MP? I don't want to be a pain

[greenspacesbb]

Hi,
I live in a big city with limited green space. I'm part of a group that forrages for fun, plant fruit trees and try to live sustainably.

I've emailed my local mp a couple of times for:
-400 year old woodland proposed to be built on (we won!)
-blackberry bushes being pruned (taken 4 foot back) just before blackberries are ripe.

I want to email them again because its almost cherry season and the council have trimmed all the mature cherry trees (and some others) so we won't be getting any and the birds won't be getting many. Also it's nesting season, I was under the impression you can't prune until autumn? I don't know why but I'm embarrassed to email them again. I feel like a pain but a good few of us pick enough to make jam/ jelly that lasts until the next year. They've pruned very hard and the closest branch is now 15 foot in the air. Completely unreachable, whereas my children could reach before.

My local MP is great, he's green party and really gets on the ground with litter picks and local tree planting so I think he might care, but I've also been indoctrinated into this society as a woman, eager to please and an obsessive need to be well liked and well regarded.

Is it worth messaging? What would you think if you received yet another complaint about pruning?

This is long. sorry.

bump

It's your MPs job.

Is it in the remit of the MP though, or is this a town council issue? I would try the local council first, and depending on how that goes, maybe register your concern with the MP.

Of course email him. It is his job. How will he know people care about this issue if you don't?

It will be dealt with by someone in their office so go for it.

Ah conflicting. I not sure if it's his job or not.

Don't be embarrassed. Put your activist hat on. Persistence pays off.
Contact the MP, the local council and the local press.
You are absolutely right in what you are saying - it is vandalism.

Bit confused though - the only Green MP is Caroline Lucas.

He's a local mp, i don't know. The ones that deal with constituents in a particular postcode. @Gtsr443

It's vandalism to prune at this time of year?

I’m guessing you’re not in the UK as we don’t have male Green MPs here. But I’d usually say a councillor or MP would be glad to hear about this kind of thing, easy wins.

It's no issue to complain - that's literally their job - but it's more effective for you and them to work out if you're talking to the right person. This is a council issue so you want your local councillor - which is very easily googleable.

Is it your MP or local councillor? More likely to be councillor and you could also go directly to the council land services department (or whatever it’s called where you are).

MP’s can oil the wheels of this kind of thing but it will almost certainly be easier to go directly to the Council.

It's vandalism to prune at this time of year?

It depends on where you live but none of the gardeners I know round here - including professionals - would prune or cut hedges until nesting is completely over. Smaller birds here still haven't fledged.
This country is obsessed with hacking things back.

Ah yes, I'm an idiot. He's a Councillor not an MP (see I have no clue!) He's my local Councillor not mp,
my mp is a labour man, I've gotten confused.

So I've been emailing my Local Councillor, should I be emailing my MP? both? neither?

@Gtsr443 I can agree with this. There's also a place with loads of apple mint and we missed that last year as it was cut back too far. It grows back but when you're into it, it's a real blow.

I live in a massive city. So there isn't much to go around. Although I will say, there are loads of people who are setting up little community gardens and planting trees. It's wonderful

Copy in your local councillors and county councillors one of them will have responsibility and they’ll all be able to see it’s an issue.

In my borough, different areas of grass come under different offices, verges are county council some open grass areas are borough responsibility. Road signs are highways and litter bins are borough council. It’s an absolute minefield finding out who to contact. So I’d contact them all about something so important.
Incidentally the issues you have highlighted are a consequence of contracting out services to the lowest bidder, the people doing the job have no training in environmental protection. As long as they have a chainsaw they’re good to go. Properly trained horticultural experts aren’t employed.

This may help

https://www.writetothem.com/

@SleazyLizzard thank you so much I will. My younger sister and her friends are interested in conservation so I'll see if they want to email too.

I understand that it's an MPs job to look after town affairs but I don't think many/any will care much that you're not able to make jam

Sounds like a training issue for the council staff

If you can show there are rare or protected species then you can make a case for “what the duck are you doing?”

if you don’t report it no one will and it’s an easily solved issue which you could probably get some local press over - a pic of you and the councillor smiling over a big bush will appeal to your councillor. Get him to come to your group, it’s his job and you will all know things that can be passed onto the staff.

Good for you.

I would assume that it's your Local Authority/Borough Council responsible for this work so you need to be contacting your Councillor (who is your representative at Council level) rather than your MP (who is your representative at Westminster)

I’d have thought it’s an issue for your council more than the MP so you might have more success there. But it’s not an inappropriate thing to write to them about if you want to and they will likely have a caseworker on staff who will deal with it (DH used to be one).

Sorry my response was rather hasty. As people have said it is a matter for your local council so they are the place to start. Your have a bit of a head start of your ward councillor is from the Green party as they will be interested and should contact council officers on your behalf.
A lot of services are contracted out to private companies so the council pays them to provide a service. However the council does still have a day in how this service is run.

Keep going in your campaigning. Things can change for example our local council has stopped using dangerous weed killer.

Absolutely contact your MP/ councillers if you need to.

If you get a response, even better. My local MP is a lazy fucker so doesn't bother replying to anything.

You keep campaigning to everyone and anyone, councillors, mp's, county councillors. Don't let up!!!
Eco systems are being destroyed daily by the unknowledgeable people in power.