from the uk s armed forces. it s just over two weeks to the local elections in england, and the green party is hoping to build on gains in recent years, including in mid suffolk. the party did well there at the last vote in 2019, but this time they re hoping to go further, and win their first majority control of a council. in the first of our pieces about the issues that matter to you in these elections, our political correspondent helen catt reports from woolpit in suffolk. at first glance, the villages of mid suffolk might not seem the most obvious place for the greens to target. they are rural, reliant on the car, and many homes use oil for heating. but the greens think they can win here this year, partly by tapping into concerns about housing developments like this one on the edge of woolpit. at the weekly meeting of the table tennis club, competition is polite but fierce. there are worries here about large scale development. i think the sheer volume of building and the number of p
would be moving into the area, probably the main concern is about the facilities. can they cope? and what about jobs? there s nojobs in woolpit. ijust hope that an influx isn t going to destroy that wonderful, friendly atmosphere. down the road in stowmarket it s a lack of people that s the concern. paul has been cutting keys and repairing shoes for a0 years, nine of them in this shop. running a business at the moment is a hit up and down. it can be a scary thought. i m coming into work every day wondering whether you re going to get the people through the door. i would like someone who would come into this town and start to look at what they can do. his concerns are echoed on the high streets. we need more doctors, dentists. the schools are quite good as well, but we just need a bit more infrastructure. there doesn t seem to be enough local business in the high street i