Blogging is here to stay
More and more MPs are turning into bloggers, it would seem, though the number is still very small. But then again it was once unusual to have a website, now it is very common amongst MPs of all parties.
The fact is that the electorate is getting more and more reluctant to vote because they think politicians do not listen to them. The massive regionalisation, centralisation and influence of Brussels have added to this perception. As services provided locally disappear, whether it is the magistrates’ courts or sub post offices, despite enormous and passionate campaigns, this negative view gains ground.
Blogging, at least at the level that I do it, is a way of communicating through to ones electors, and to the public at large. People are invited to respond, and we track the number of hits.
However the one person who has inspired me and others to write a blog is Iain Dale of 18 Doughty Street. His advice was: write it regularly, if possible daily, and be true to yourself about what you write.
Mine may not be filled with brilliant new gossip, or high wire political posturing, but I enjoy writing it, and I hope at least some may sometimes enjoy reading it.