In under a month’s time, we have elections. Not the expected general election scheduled for some time before the end of January next year, but Kidderminster Town Council, and the Police and Crime Commissioner for our local police force, West Mercia.
Local elections are important, yet the turnout rarely tops the 35% mark. To be honest, I find this surprising. I get a lot of constituents contacting me about planning, yet MPs have nothing whatsoever to do with planning. It is all down to the local council, including controversial issues such as the local development plan.
Kidderminster Town Council is unusual. It was created very recently, in December 2015. Prior to that, it had been left out of the town and parish council network, having just a group of civic representatives made up local district councillors, and known as the Charter Trustees. Now the town has a proper council and is responsible for open spaces, public lavatories, and the Town Hall, undergoing a fabulous redevelopment to create a performing arts hub for the town. Quite right too – Kidderminster is the second largest town in Worcestershire, after Redditch. Looking back to before the changes, it seemed incredible there was no organisation that could speak up for residents on things like planning, as Bewdley, Stourport, and all our parishes have.
Similarly, the role of Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) was created in 2011 to replace the outdated Police Authorities. The PCCs are there to act as the political overseer of our regional police force. The idea was that whilst they have very little to do with operational matters, they are accountable to an electorate for wider policy. This gives our communities more say in how we want to be policed, and what our priorities are. Although I still get emails about police, the volume has dropped dramatically since the first elections and if that is an indication of success, they seem to be doing well.
Of course, I am a member of a political party, and so will support my candidates. But what I am really keen to see is more engagement in local politics. I fear turnout risks being lower than normal, and I can see that the tone of the election campaigns from the main parties is already angry and hostile. It’s enough to put anyone off. But democracy is a hard fought for right and it is something we should embrace. So please remember to vote!