Last weeks local election results in Reading left the parties in the following state:
Labour 22 seats
Tories 16 seats
Lib Dems 6 seats
Greens 2 seats

No party has an overall majority and the Greens have been left with a choice of propping up a Labour administration or joining a broad coalition with the Tories and Lib Dems.
They have been put in a very uncomfortable place as propping up a Labour administration will tie them into all the decisions that Labour make and there will need to be some tough ones if Reading is to keep within its budgets.

On the other hand the Lib Dem/Tory coalition that prised control of the council away from Labour last May after 23 years has already made many of the tough budget decisions (and also opened up some of Labour’s darker secrets like funding Labour (union) activists from tax-payers money) and has developed a reputation for competance that Labour has lacked over the last few years.

Returning Labour to power will not serve the Greens or the people of Reading who overwhelmingly still vote against Labour rather than for it. It is only our peculiar First Past the Post electoral system that kept them in power for so long.

Joining a coalition and taking part in Cabinet discussions and decisions means that the Greens could look to influence things rather than react to other peoples decisions. Of course this will tie them in to a coalition with other parties but one which actually has majority support from the popular vote cast in Reading.

Sadly Labour have no ideas when it comes to sharing power with anybody else. Their politics are still very tribal and they will only use the Greens to further Labour aims (which equate to hanging on to power as there is no ideology left in the Labour party) rather than work with them.

Getting elected may not have been easy for the Green councillors, but making key decisions over who to support in the council chamber may well prove to be very much harder.