Engaging the Voter

In the current climate there are more than the usual number of responses that politicians are dishonest, cheating liars, out to feather their own nests. I want people to know that I am a politician of a different type and I hope that before long I will have the opportunity to prove this. I would also add that the current economic situation has arisen not just through the actions of politicians but also as a result of the actions of bankers and city traders and across the spectrum from one of people's less redeeming features '“ greed.

Another response is the 'can't be bothered/don't want to know/not voting' person. Here I ask them to consider the great trouble that individuals went to in the past to obtain universal suffrage '“ votes for everyone or in the truer meaning of the expression one vote for every person. We tend to remember the struggle for the vote in the guise of the women suffragettes, chaining themselves to railings and throwing themselves in front of race horses. There was however also a gradual struggle for the working man to get the vote. Recent turn outs on polling day are a poor reward for the struggles those campaigners went through.

Today there is no real barrier to exercising one's vote other than ensuring that your name is on the electoral register. It is therefore a personal choice to reject your democratic opportunity. I think that with that rejection the right to criticise those who are elected is lost.

We pride ourselves in living in a country of equal opportunity. This has been reinforced by a raft of anti discrimination, equality and diversity legislation. But have we still got it right despite the legislation?

Margaret Thatcher, the first British woman prime minister, did little to promote other women. Was she too busy trying to protect herself or was she unaware of the opportunity? The one thing I am able to admire her for was the fact that everything she did was a result of her utmost confidence in herself. As a counter weight to the shortage of women in the last Conservative government, the Labour party had a system of all women short lists in some places, resulting in the pictures of Blair's Babes following their election in 1997. A quick look at today's Cabinet however, shows again a definite imbalance. The same can also be said of our District and County Councils.

As a prospective parliamentary candidate I like to think that I have reached this position on my own merits, disregarding whether I am male or female. In the Liberal Democrats we do have a campaign group for gender balance and inevitably a support group for women. It has been good to have their support in finding my way through the necessary processes but I do not believe it has given me any added advantage.

Individuals have their own strengths and weaknesses either physical or mental and support groups enable them to be identified. Those strengths and weaknesses need to be recognised but equally there is a need to recognise that there are dangers in promoting positive discrimination. With that comes the risk of allegations of cronyism as seen in Labours' attempts to get a 22 year old 'well-connected' woman selected in Erith and Thamesmead and their continued use of all women short-lists.

I look forward to a good turnout for the approaching County and European elections. We Liberal Democrats will certainly be putting up excellent candidates of great diversity. I am also confident that they have the necessary qualifications to attract the support of the disaffected.