WITH regard to the County Council and European Parliament poll, it has become much of an advertising battle between the main parties. This takes some understanding from my perspective of an Independent.
When we publish our A4 pamphlets, often in a single colour, we are close to the limits allowed for spending on these pamphlets. Yet over the last few weeks in the division of Brooksdean, householders have received from the mainstream parties, high quality pamphlets, some amounting to a mini-newspaper. Another party has distributed up to five glossy multi-coloured pamphlets full of photographs.
Once again these are examples of how to bypass the rules and bend the requirements at the heart of democracy. Those Independents I work with, pay and make their own way when standing as candidates in elections. On this occasion the way things have turned out, I find myself neither standing as an Independent or distributing a colleague's leaflets. However I still think of the Forest as essentially an Independent and radical place and I would like to see politics taken out local elections.
Therefore I can only hope people will have looked at candidate's track record of serving their communities before voting for them.
Crucially have they firstly served their apprenticeship on parish or town councils, where there are no travelling expenses and allowances? We should never underestimate these first steps of serving our community and perhaps all candidates, whether local or for Parliament should take note, before trying to jumping straight into district, county and parliament seats. – Andrew Gardiner, Ruardean.