As the campaigning season gets under way, there will hopefully be considerable debate about what the various political parties have to offer.
A decade ago, these same council elections had their turnout boosted by occurring on the same day as the European Elections. This was something of a novelty at the time but has become quite a standard practice because it seems to work.
Politicians can question why people vote the way that they do and complain about this being influenced by national factors but in a democracy that is the choice that people have. We must respect the outcome of an election regardless of our perception of the reasons behind that particular result.
There is legitimate space for political parties to knock each other about, so as to speak, regarding their track record or lack of it. At the same time, many people would claim that achievement-led campaigning is a better strategy as it tends to be more positive and engaging.
If this is true, my own political party should take some comfort from it. Eight years so far controlling Crawley Borough Council is just one quarter of the previous party’s tenure but we would say that we have delivered a great deal in that timeframe.
It would not have been easy for any political party to run Crawley during a particularly severe recession but our town weathered the situation well. Employment rates have recovered, the first phase of Town Centre North, on the former Sussex House site, will be fully open in June. The programme of neighbourhood parade improvements was accelerated. We adopted a policy of paying SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises) invoices within ten days and this successful approach is still in place.
Our 8,000 plus council houses have been brought up to the Decent Homes Standard for an investment of £30 milllion. Tilgate Park has been major improvements with a new restaurant, the return of boating, investment in the nature centre, a treetop adventure trail experience and improved parking. Further big projects are in hand with work starting to restore Ifield Mill Pond, one of our largest watercourses, to its former glory.
So despite the challenges, with vision and competence, so much is possible. And all of this at the same time as delivering the best Council Tax record in all of Sussex, including four annual freezes in a row.