Don’t fall for dirty tricks of Lib Dems

Some voters in Canterbury City North and South were disconcerted on the eve of the county council elections to receive personally addressed letters, apparently aware of their intention to vote Green or Labour, urging them to vote Lib Dem instead as the only real opposition.

Those of us who do not vote Conservative in Kent – a county which is subject to practically one-party rule under our present undemocratic electoral system – are always seeking ways to make our votes count.

Judging by the county election results, a large number of such voters appear to have fallen for the Lib Dems’ overtures. This was particularly galling in Canterbury City North, where loyal Green supporters spent many hours of their free time winning over voters on the doorstep with never a yellow rosette in sight. When it came to the election, the Lib Dems failed to win the seat, having had little chance of doing so despite their claims, and yet they increased their vote substantially.

Canterbury District Green Party offered the Lib Dems a pact for the May elections last December, precisely to defeat the Tories in Canterbury. The idea was rejected without so much as a meeting.

Local Lib Dems should reflect that their dirty tricks might not work on the electorate again. For those wanting to vote tactically to defeat our Tory MP , it may be useful to know that the Lib Dems received just 11% of the vote in 2015.

The only chance we have of returning a non-tory Canterbury MP is to form a progressive alliance to stand one single candidate to represent the three local parties. As this proposal from the Greens has been rejected by both the Lib Dems and Labour, the only choice local progressives have is to vote for the party which most closely represents what they believe in and to build up that party’s