Welcome to platform 1 here at a pretty cold Welling Station. At least, it's apparently pretty cold, although I've worked up a sweat delivering for Grace Goodlad's campaign to be the new Liberal Democrat councillor for East Wickham. Given that I've commuted in from Suffolk this morning, put in a full day at work and then come to Bexley, my enthusiasm for getting Grace elected is undeniable.
I wasn't as organised as might be ideal, as I've done my delivery round with a laptop on my back, but despite the dark and cold, it went pretty smoothly. The part of the ward that I was in is comparatively easy to deliver, although not as easy as East Dulwich was (minute front gardens, long terraces and flat ground for the most part).
However, all this means nothing unless people come forward to do the delivering, which is what brought this North Londoner to distant South East London. Bexley is a prime example of a place where we have a potential vote far greater than that achieved in recent years. It wasn't that long ago that we had fourteen councillors and were part of the administration, yet now we have not a single councillor. And yes, going from zero to one might not mean much in the scheme of things, but it means that there is another potential block of votes that can be delivered in regional list elections which wasn't fully tapped before. How many votes were we short of a second European Parliament seat in London in 2004? How many votes short of a fourth London Assembly seat this year?
I'm a firm believer that a small investment in those areas where we are weak will pay off if it is converted into a few more members, a few more activists and an extra councillor or two. It isn't exactly a fashionable view, I know, but given that our performance in list elections is hardly stellar, what harm is there in trying something slightly different?
Ah well, at least I've done something useful this evening...
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