Liam Stokes in The Spectator

Countryside Alliance Head of Shooting Liam Stokes wrote a piece for The Spectator's Coffee House blog in which he challenges a Welsh Assembly Member's assertion that "facts are a matter of opinion" when it comes to e-petitions. Liam writes that while e-petitions are not in themselves a worry, "problems arise when petitions are not started by individuals or communities, but by lobby groups – and it's here that the collision with post-truth politics occurs. It is not terribly hard to sign a petition: a couple of mouse clicks and your participation in mass democracy is all done........ Many people on Twitter have neither the time nor the inclination to learn about countryside management issues, but show them a picture of a dead animal, a lurid statement and a catchy hashtag, and you can often provoke a response. And if that response is to sign a petition that may catch the attention of government, does it really matter if the lurid statement is actually true?" Read Liam's thought-provoking piece here.