Taking the campaign to the North East, and vice versa

Thanks to the wonders of modern technology, this entry comes to you from somewhere between York and Darlington, courtesy of National Express East Coast's free wifi service. It will therefore come as no surprise when I tell you that Ros and I are on our way to the North East to campaign in Newcastle, Berwick and Durham as part of their campaign in the forthcoming local elections.

Whilst Ros has a long record of campaigning around the country, given her responsibilities as our Lords spokesperson on Communities and Local Government, my history is not so good. I've not been terribly keen on visible campaigning, partly because I find 'retail' politics stressful, but because I've generally been busy with the administrative side of things (motto - going to meetings so that you don't have to).

That said, I've been encouraged by Ros to take a more active part in the campaigning work of the Party, and it is entirely right that even bureaucrats should get out and about, meeting voters and arguing the case for liberal democracy. So, today I will be canvassing in two Newcastle wards in support of our candidates.

We're very used to seeing MP's dashing around the country during election campaigns, but members of the House of Lords are a resource that we use much less effectively than we might. Ros is by no means the only Peer on the circuit, so to speak, yet when I talk to friends around the country about getting good speakers, they tend to be fixated on our sixty-odd MP's, forgetting that our Peers often have as much, if not more, to add to campaigning and fundraising efforts. They have the same portfolios, tend to get more time to speak and have, ironically, more influence on government business than to their colleagues at the other end of the Palace of Westminster. They often have quite interesting backstories - for example, one of our noble Lords was in RAF Bomber Command during World War II.

So perhaps it shouldn't be a surprise to see Ros appear at a Local Party event near you. Yes, she is running for Party President, it's true - one can hardly pretend otherwise, there's been enough overt campaigning. And yes, appearances do raise her profile. On the other hand, the opportunity to get eagerly sought media coverage is improved by the presence of a Parliamentarian, local members like to have a chance to meet them, especially in areas where we have comparatively few, and morale is raised by the realisation that someone out there actually cares enough to visit. Best of all, it's all free - we pay our own way...