One of the things about producing a Focus leaflet is making sure that you have enough material. And given that not much happens in a District Council ward as a rule, any help that you can get can only be a good thing.
However, there is a point to seking material from other sources. The residents of Stowupland and Creeting St Peter don't just vote at District level, they have votes at Parish, County, Westminster and European levels, so my Focus leaflet is a means by which other candidates and representatives can get a message out. I'm told that this is what is meant by an integrated campaigning strategy...
Last time, I asked our PPC, David Chappell, for some input, and I used his contribution to make a point about MP expenses. This time, I thought that I might include some European content - it only seems right to remind people that Europe isn't wholly a bad thing - so I sent an e-mail to Andrew Duff's office earlier this evening, to see if they had anything I could drop into a leaflet. And, within a few hours, I got a reply from Tim Huggan, letting me know that they would be pleased to help and asking for a deadline. On a Sunday, no less! I am suitably impressed.
I know that there are many that are cautious about incorporating a European message in their campaigning - the public are anti-Europe, they say. However, you can't change that by hiding in the trenches, and I think that if we're honest about the failings of European institutions and bold about talking up the benefits of international co-operation, we might yet be surprised by the results.
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