2025 is going to be a difficult year for democracy. A tsunami of new rules and laws is flowing from Westminster.
So what can we do?
lStrengthen the small amount of local democracy left to us. That means parish and town councils.
lGive Spalding a town council.
lUpgrade Holbeach Parish Council to a town and villages council.
lSupport, join and inform ourselves of how this lowest tier of local democracy works and do all we can to increase the level of funding available for solving genuine local problems.
lMake sure we turn out to vote when parish and town elections take place and use co-option to fill vacancies on those councils outside election times. At local level vote for people not for parties.
Why?
lHolbeach, like many other towns in South Lincolnshire, is rapidly growing. Three highly contentious issues in particular are now threatening our access to democracy.
lHuge pylons and associated electricity storage and generation schemes are being forced upon us by government against the clear will of local authorities and many residents, mainly to upgrade on the cheap. If it’s more expensive to use better distribution systems that cost must fall on shareholders and central government, not on power bills.
lCentralisation of democratic institutions is being imposed by government, which removes accountability far away from local areas.
lPlanning committee decisions are now increasingly dictated by Westminster, without any consideration of our failing infrastructure.
We have a Labour government with a massive majority and will be stuck with it for up to five years, with no way of removing it. This government knows full well it will not be re-elected, so it feels it has no restraints on how it acts. It’s also looking increasingly like the next Parliament will result in a coalition, that may not be a bad thing, since it encourages compromise.
Paul Foyster
Holbeach
