Quote of the week

Life isn't about finding yourself, it is about creating yourself'

George Bernard Shaw
If you cannot mould yourself entirely as you would wish, how can you expect other people to be entirely to your liking?
Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/wish.html

Saturday, November 17, 2012

Thursday's elections, a failure of democracy?



People in the media have suggested that the very low turnout in Thursday’s elections for police commissioners was a blow for democracy.  I don’t agree.

A refusal to vote in some circumstances can give a louder message than going out to vote, and I think that this was the case this time.

The level of information provided by the Government about the purpose of the new Police Commissioners, and the nature of the Police Authority, the body that they have replaced, was insultingly sparse.  Were the Government to be fully committed to the idea of police commissioners, should they not have had enough respect for the intelligence of the electorate to make sure that it was properly informed?

It is wrong to assume that everyone will look on the internet to find out information about candidates standing for election.  It is still the case that many people do not have access to computers. Moreover, if the reason for an election is not properly understood it is unlikely that people will bother.

In order to vote people need information.  In my view it is a sign of maturity and sophistication in an electorate, if, when they neither know the candidates or understand the issues,  they decide not to vote.

Not a failure of democracy at all…just a failure of communication and lack of commitment to their own policy on behalf of the Government.

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