Last May Councillor Paul Williams (Llantarnam Ward, Torfaen) placed an advert in local newspapers thanking people for participating in the General Election; reminding people that “Democracy does not solely rely upon you participating in the election of the person to serve your community; it also requires you to continually express your concerns and aspirations to all those privileged to represent you”.
Paul explains; “To allow people to further participate in the democratic process I am to hold a series of public meetings to provide further information (in a totally non-party political format) on the 2 Referenda, the Census and the Assembly Elections”.
- 3 March: Referendum on Assembly law making powers.
- 27 March: Census
- 5 May: Assembly Elections & Referendum in the Alternative Vote for electing MPs
“I am a great believer not only in giving people to opportunity to meet with their elected representatives; but highlighting the responsibility of elected representatives to provide information to people, to engage with them and encourage the widest participation in elections”.
“In the next 2 months we have 3 opportunities for people to determine how their services are provided, those who are elected to provide them and the system for determining how people are elected to public service; furthermore the Census will provide the information on which services are required in which areas of Wales”.
“I am finding that people are seeking more unbiased information on the referenda; they are not fully aware of their significance and I am seeking to provide the impetus that leads to their participation”.
“It is vital that we promote the importance of these polls and the census; for they will have a major impact on future of our communities”.
The first of these meetings will be held on Tuesday 22 February in the Henllys Suite, Cwmbran Stadium from 2:00 to 3:00pm and from 7:00 to 8:00pm.
