I urge all to cast their vote tomorrow

We live in a society where freedom of speech is taken for granted. You can express your views, within justified limits, without the fear of sanction.

You also have a say in determining what you see as best for your community.

This is your human right if you live in a western democracy such as ours. Dip into history books and you will discover that people have died so that you may maintain your right to freedom of expression.

For fear of over-dramatising this point, there are far more countries in the world who deny their citizens these rights than there are countries that uphold them.

Fortunately, we are a country that falls within the latter category. We do not suffer from the sham elections held by countries which are democracies in name only.

And yet according to the Election Commission, turnout for local elections throughout the UK was a mere 33.6% in 2022. Granted the turnout is a lot lower than figures for general elections, but overall, estimated turnout decreased by one percentage point compared to the last time there were comparable elections for district, metropolitan, unitary councils and London boroughs in 2018.

The most common reasons given by people who didn’t vote was: lack of time/too busy/I was busy at work (18%); I’m just not interested in politics/ fed up with politics (11%); there was no point in voting because it was obvious who would win/my vote wouldn’t have made a difference to the outcome/my vote doesn’t count (9%); I was away on voting day (8%); I didn’t like the candidates/ parties/they didn’t represent my views (7%).

If you don’t vote, you don’t really have reason to complain if things don’t go your way regarding local issues. I urge everyone to vote. It’s you right. Use it … and don’t forget to take ID.