IN RESPONSE to a letter from Pete Gillman (Argus, April 22), in the run up to this local election we would like to focus on what has been achieved in the city over the last four years.

Brighton and Hove Green party have delivered on 85% of our 195 manifesto pledges from 2011.

In a time when people feel separated from politicians and struggle to believe anything we say, it’s a key achievement that we have been true to our word and have robust ambitions for the next four years.

In the face of national cuts and austerity we have not rested on our laurels and accepted the reduction in government money.

We have branched out and raised £98 million worth of additional funding to improve neglected areas such as The Level, London Road, Hove Park, the Open Market and Seven Dials.

Our focus on the environment has been a massive improvement to our city. We have reduced air pollution across the city and introduced a low emissions zone in the city centre, leading to a healthier city for everyone.

We are not the first city to install 20mph and hopefully won’t be the last as, alongside more cycle lanes and better footpaths, it has led to 200 fewer people hurt on our roads.

Our city is also the 2014 European Transport City of the Year and the least car-dependent outside London.

This Green Party (despite being a minority administration) has still delivered against a backdrop of financial cuts from the coalition government, and put Brighton & Hove on the international map as the UK’s favourite seaside resort.

Tourism has risen to 11m visitors with a 5% rise in overnight stays.

The local economy is outperforming the rest of the UK and we have seen 9,000 more jobs created and become the second highest UK city for businesses.

Through our transformation projects such as London Road we have also seen previously shun-ned areas of the city rejuvenated and emp-ty shops brought back to exciting, functioning new premises.

Having the best economy wouldn’t mean much if the money from local businesses didn’t benefit the people of the city.

In light of this, we brought in a Living Wage for our employees and supported its uptake by over 200 local employers.

In fact 20% of UK’s Living Wage employers are in Brighton & Hove, meaning workers took home an extra £1.5million a year.

This money also goes back into the local economy, so helping everything work as it should do in a fair and focused community.

An important topic for the party has been young people and their education. Pete Gilman was quick to point out that our new secondary school is not already completed.

He doesn’t mention that we have sufficient secondary places.

But the plans are in place for when the spaces will be needed in a few years, and we are very close to realising that much-needed project.

Meanwhile we have ensured parents get a primary school place at a school near to them by expanding existing schools.

Having a great seaside spot for tourists and a fantastic economy for businesses doesn’t help the people who live here or want to live here which means that housing has been a priority for us.

We have introduced 700 affordable homes – a 600% increase from the previous two councils – and brought 900 empty homes back to use.

It’s traditional before an election for other parties to focus on the negatives but the sun is shining and in the latest poll from the Office of National Statistics, 91% of residents asked said they were proud of their city.

Councillor Jason Kitcat

Leader of Brighton and Hove City Council (2012–2015)