What NEED does this meet?
The site would allow people at a local level to publish their ideas about local/countrywide/global political issues. It would allow people to back the person who meets there political needs rather than being reduced to picking from the 3 main parties.
What is the APPROACH?
People would register using there postcode then can build up a number of articles under different categories (Health/Environment/Transport/etc) these would be dated to stop poeple just using other peoples ideas. Other users could then vote on all the policies presented in there local area. An overview page would show the most popular candidates in that area and then when local elections come people will have the choice to vote for the person who matches there political standpoint (if they choose to run)
What are the BENEFITS to people?
The benefit of the site is that it brings democracy closer to the people and away from party leaders. People will have a more direct way of getting there ideas put into action by voting in the person who best represents them rather than picking from the three main polictical groups where policy is dictated by the party not the people.
What is the COMPETITION?
I don’t think there are other sites that provide this services at a national level. The site would connect nicely with the existing site writetothem as at a local level you would be able to look up the policies of the main parties and your local candidates statistics on the subjects that fit the main catagories (Transport/Environment/etc)
What BUDGETS & LOGISTICS are required?
The site would be very easy to build as it would basically be fairly simple database where the ideas/user credentials/etc are stored and a numebr of forms on the front to allow people to enter the ideas and vote on the existing ideas. I imagine a web services would have to be utilised to get policitical region from the entered postcode but this tech must exist for WriteToThem. All statistics would be fairly simplistic and would either originate from the data stored or from WriteToThem.
RSS feed
April 6th, 2006 at 8:46am
Sounds similar to the BBC Action Network site:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/actionnetwork/
although the BBC site doesn’t focus on candidates, just campaigns.
April 6th, 2006 at 9:26am
Thanks Craig, I was unaware of the BBC Action Network.
I think my idea is different in that it is designed to promote an alternative local candidate and to match that candidate with the populous that supports his ideas on certain key issues. The Action Network on first glance is more about linking people with similare interests/concerns in the local area. Although the Action Network could be used in the manor I am suggesting, that doesn’t appear to be it’s main goal.
I see indygovernment as allowing the public to enter their postcode. Select all the policies that they agree with, maybe with a scale to show how important it is to them. Then be given a breakdown of who proposed those policies and who is running with them.
At grass roots I want to match people to policies. I want to vote for someone who meets my needs not the needs of party policy.
Thanks again for the interest. Please let me know if the idea is encompassed by the Action Network. If so I will put some effort into content for that site.
April 6th, 2006 at 11:36am
A truly excellent idea. As you will note, I’m already a practicing believer in this concept, at a local level.
Background Briefing
——————-
With current local election turnout at an average of 32%, Independent candidates provide the electorate with more choice and help to unlock voter apathy.
There have been Independent Councillors serving their communities for well over 100 years, and at present there are some 2,000 in England and Wales, who carry on the tradition of open and accountable local government. Independent Councillors want to respond to the local community in a way that serves the community interest and not a party political interest…
Being an Independent does not mean that the candidate has no political views. Almost everyone has some political views and tends towards supporting a particular national party on national issues. However, Independent Councillors believe that national concerns very often do not translate well into local government. And for the same reason many Town and Parish Councils are non-political.
Independent Councillors have a belief that no party has a monopoly of good ideas and that local government depends on people of goodwill, people who listen to advice, argue, and debate, are capable of arriving at sensible decisions on their merits, for the good of the community, and are not driven by a higher party allegiance.
It is no coincidence that Independent politics remains at its strongest in rural areas – it is in these areas that communities are at their most fragile. The imperative has been to work together, collectively, irrespective of party beliefs and by building as a broad consensus as possible on how to advance the community interest. Independents make a virtue of their day-by-day decisions reflecting aspects of policies across parties.
More members of all political parties are becoming Independents to throw off the shackles of the party whip and escape from decision-making behind closed doors…
June 13th, 2006 at 11:59pm
If you could divide the local government decision-making process into two catagories: decisions made by local representatives without the consent of the people and decisions made by local representatives requiring prior approval of the people, what would be included in those two catagories?
October 14th, 2006 at 9:24am
Hi fully Support your idea i started Canvey Island Independent Party 3 years ago in a Conservative and labour domanated area we are now the biggest party on Canvey Island with 11 Councillors to Tory 4 Labour 1 the people are ready for change ,all our Councillors working class who are fully intouch with the realitys of life. all best Dave Blackwell Leader Canvey Island Independent Party