THE Greens got their General Election campaign underway in Swindon on Saturday with a launch in front of the party faithful.

Arguably the best prepared for a snap contest, the Swindon Area Green Party held elections for their parliamentary candidates before the end of 2016 meaning they were ready to hit the ground running as others scrambled to respond.

In previous years the party has seen an increase in its support across the country and in 2015 the Green candidate in North Swindon forced the Lib Dems into fifth place.

Presenting their visions to supporters and friends on Saturday, the 2017 candidates appeared determined to build on that progress this time around.

Standing for the first time in a General Election after chairing the Swindon branch is North Swindon candidate Andy Bentley.

Setting out his platform he made a pitch for frustrated Labour voters to consider voting Green instead.

“The Labour Party have recently been borrowing a lot of Green Party policies,” said Mr Bentley.

“The policy of taxing private education to fund free school dinners, they’ve come on board with our policy of a £10 minimum wage too.

“We have a lot in common, but if you want those policies to survive the next leadership election you’ve got to stick with the Green Party.”

In a wide ranging speech, Mr Bentley touched on issues as varied as Brexit and economic fairness, to foodbanks, wages and of course the environment.

He ended by telling supporters: “There’s a better way, a greener way.

“I’m very proud to be the Green Party candidate for North Swindon. It’s a decision I thought long and hard about.

“I’m standing up for what I believe in – to make the world a better place.

“I’m fighting for a future that we can all be proud of and I hope that you’ll join me.”

Mr Bentley was joined by Talis Kimberley-Fairbourn, the Green Party’s candidate for South Swindon.

Ms Kimberley-Fairbourn contested the same seat in 2015 where she saw the party's share of the vote increase by 2.3 per cent, albeit still with fewer votes than the four other candidates.

Her speech to party members was centred on the idea of principles outlasting policies.

She said:“You will hear a lot in the coming weeks about policies and that is important. But I’d like you to think too about principles.

“Policies sometimes change, because circumstances change. But principles shouldn’t.

“The principles of fairness and sustainability underpin everything the Green Party does and everything that people who stand for the Green Party believe in.

“Fairness because people like you and me can lose jobs, or be struck with a sudden illness, or have a life changing accident.

“What’s a government for if it’s not to look after the wellbeing of the people in its care?

“Sustainability because without prompt, widespread and comprehensive action the ice is going to go on melting, the sea will go on rising, the climate is going to keep on changing and 40,000 people die prematurely in the UK every year from poor air quality.

“I hope we can seize this chance we’ve been given, the UK really needs a change of course.”

While the Green Party were launching their Swindon campaign, Conservatives Justin Tomlinson and Robert Buckland were out with party members door knocking and delivering leaflets in the North and South of the town respectively.

Both are defending majorities that will be difficult, on the face of it, for their opponents to overcome given the national picture and the relatively short run up to polling day - but neither camp is being complacent.

Echoing the message of Conservatives up and down the country, Mr Buckland and Mr Tomlinson are urging voters to make a choice between the 'strong and stable leadership in the national interest' of a Theresa May-led Tory government, or ‘a weak and unstable coalition of chaos’ led by Jeremy Corbyn with support from Nicola Sturgeon and the SNP.

However with their closest challengers Labour still waiting to confirm a candidate in either Swindon seat, is does feel as if the Conservatives are moving steadily towards polling day without facing any coordinated opposition.

Prospective Labour candidates for North and South Swindon put their names forward almost a week ago now to party HQ but panels made up of national and regional representatives are not expected to make final selections until the middle of this coming week.

2015 candidate Mark Dempsey still looks most likely to contest the North Swindon seat again. The situation in South Swindon however is less clear.

The uncertainty over candidate selection hasn’t stopped Swindon Labour supporters taking to the pavements and knocking on doors over the weekend as they look to build momentum off the back of Jeremy Corbyn’s visit early on in the campaign.

The Lib Dems are expected to confirm the names of their candidates in North and South Swindon on Monday evening.

Veteran councillor Stan Pajak, who stood for the party in 1997 when Tony Blair’s New Labour swept to power, is believed to be a likely candidate for South Swindon.

The Lib Dems came fifth out of five in North Swindon last time around, losing a staggering 13.9 per cent of their previous vote against the backdrop of a national collapse for the party.

It’s not yet clear who will take on the challenge of rebuilding their base and bringing back the votes in the North.

The Swindon branch of UKIP have been busy this weekend too. The party has confirmed that their candidates will be Martin Costello in South Swindon and Steve Halden in North Swindon.

Mr Halden stood in the 2010 General Election while this will be Mr Costello’s first appearance in a parliamentary contest.

UKIP came third in both Swindon seats in 2015 but it remains to be seen how much of that support moves to the Conservatives now that a vote to leave the EU has been secured and is being implemented.

The party is expected to release more detail on their campaign positions in the coming days.

For ongoing election coverage in the run up to June 8, including upcoming announcements about the Swindon Advertiser Question Time event at the Wyvern Theatre, visit www.swindonadvertiser.co.uk and follow us on Twitter and Facebook.