Next month is your biggest chance to influence how your local area is run for four years.
The local elections on Thursday May 7 will pit incumbents Labour against the Liberal Democrats, the Green Party and to a lesser degree the Conservatives.
The News does not back any single party so cannot make your decision for you.
What we do say is that you should think about your feelings on how Southwark is run. Are you happy with the way your street looks, the number of new buildings springing up in the area, how easy it is to get from A to B? Your children’s education, or your housing?
Southwark Council does not control all of this but has huge power to affect much of it.
In the coming weeks we will put together an election special feature and would encourage people to give it a proper read and think about which party best lines up with what you want for your borough.
In the meantime, it vital that you ensure you have registered your right to vote – see our article at the bottom of the opposite page.
This year there is a greater chance for parties of all colours to gain a seat. Polls are currently showing no outright winner, so your vote will count more than ever. It would be fantastic to see greater voter turnout in the upcoming election, as figures at local elections have always been so low. The amount of people not voting can be as high as 70 per cent in some parts of the borough, particularly in Walworth and Peckham.
We have found that many of the people we meet, often on a daily basis at the paper, do not even know who their local councillors are. More people are aware of their local MP, but it is often the work of the local councillor and the council in general that will affect your day-to-day life.
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Please register to vote and get down to your local polling station on Thursday May 7. If you don’t, well think twice before complaining about the council over the next four years!
To be able to vote, you must first be sure that you have registered to vote, which you should do before the end of 20 April with your National Insurance number in under five minutes through the council’s website.
