For some time since I came of voting age I took the view that it was more important to vote (when I bothered to vote) for the party, not the man (or woman). A lot of people, perhaps even a majority of the electorate, think this way. But I now think I was wrong and they are wrong too.
Voting for the party, regardless of the inadequacies of your local candidate, is easy. Taking the time to learn which of your local constituency candidates most deserves your support takes, well, effort. But I think that effort is worthwhile.
The expenses scandal may have brought some welcome clarity to this view. There are plenty of incumbent charlatans and rogues who deserve to be turfed from office, regardless of their party affiliation.
Everyone says that they want to improve the calibre of MPs in Westminster, but voting, blindly, on party affiliation is no way to do that.
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