I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but there’s a small matter of a General Election happening here in the UK. On Tuesday Gordon Brown trooped off to see the Queen, and we’ll be voting for our new MPs on the 6th May 2010.
The Newbury constituency I live in will be contested by candidates from the Conservative, Liberal Democrat, Labour, Green, and UK Independence parties. That’s not taking into account any independents who may yet choose to run.
For some time I’ve been interested in politics, but mainly at a national level – I’ve never really had much to do with local parliamentary or council elections. As this election approaches, that seems a daft approach – policies might be national but seats are won or lost in constituencies!
So I’ve decided I’m going to be paying quite a bit more attention to the Newbury election – in fact, I’m going to try and cover it as closely as I can. Why would I waste my time on such a daft idea?
- I’ve been looking for a project that really requires me to get some writing under my belt – this is it.
- Equally, I hope to find opportunities through the election to develop my journalistic photography.
- To my shame, since moving to Newbury last year I’ve not got involved much in local affairs and issues. I’m keen to be more active in my community, and I hope that by following parliamentary candidates, I’ll also gain an appreciation for what matters to my neighbours here.
How am I going to make this work, especially as a non-accredited, non-professional journalist with no contacts, no sources, and a full-time job? Well, that makes me the same as most other voters, and that’s the approach I’ll be taking. I am just an average Newbury resident – so I’ll be writing from the point of view of a keen, interested, citizen.
The only sources of information I’ll have are the Internet, mainstream media, and any information the candidates choose to share with me. Of course I’d also be extremely interested in any information from other Newbury people – more on that in a later post…
I plan to attend as many campaign events as possible – where conflicts exist, I will prioritise Tory & Lib Dem events, but hope to cover many of the other parties’ events. I’ll note down all that I can about the candidates’ positions – asking questions if I get the chance! – and will keep this blog up to date with everything I find out. There’ll probably be a few pictures as well.
As with any journalism, it’s important that you know my biases and influences. Honestly – right now I’m planning to vote Conservative. I’ll go into the reasons for this in future, but it boils down to the fact that I believe we need a change in government, and the Tories are the only realistic alternative. HOWEVER! I’m not closed-minded about this. If I find myself more in agreement with other parties, during the Newbury campaigns, then I’ll certainly consider the options – and I will do all I can to avoid bias in my writing.
With regards to my reporting on this blog; I commit absolutely to report factually about events, communications, the candidates’ views and any other campaign matters. Inevitably some posts will reflect my opinion, but where this happens I’ll clearly indicate so. If I’m writing about events I didn’t attend, I’ll either seek double sources and verification, or make it very clear where the information is coming from. I expect I’ll make mistakes occasionally – if you spot any errors, please get in touch and I’ll correct as soon as possible.
I hope that adequately states my position! Look out for more posts to follow shortly, particularly about how I hope to hear from more people who live in the area! In the meantime feel free to drop me a line or via @jimmillen on Twitter.