Local elections in England: Vote for the countryside

This year’s local elections take place on Thursday 04 May in England. In Northern Ireland they will take place on 18 May; there are no local elections this year in Scotland or Wales. The past year’s experience has made clearer than ever the importance of turning out to vote – and voting for candidates who understand the countryside and its communities. 

Ahead of last year’s local elections we warned of a growing threat to rural communities from local councils passing virtue-signalling motions attacking their way of life, at the behest of a shouty activist minority. Since then, their targets have grown beyond the customary punching bags of hunting, shooting and allied occupations to encompass livestock farming as a concept. 

Following the decision by Oxfordshire City Council to adopt solely plant-based menus at their events, and perhaps most illustratively of what can happen at the level of local government, Edinburgh City Council voted to endorse an activists’ charter masquerading under the name of the ‘Plant-Based Treaty’. Taken literally, its ‘demands’ could mean the Council taking meat and dairy off the menu at every facility it controls – including schools and care homes – regardless of the wishes of the people who use them. There is no reason why something similar could not happen elsewhere in the UK. 

We urge you to reserve your support for candidates who will stand up for the rural Britain and, critically, who won’t fall prey to the lure of fashionable bandwagons and easy headlines. At a time when all focus should be on supporting economic recovery and providing well-functioning local services, attacking livestock farming and food choice through initiatives such as this ‘Plant-Based Treaty’ should be well below the bottom of the to-do list. 

Remember to bring ID 

As a final reminder, this year’s local elections will be the first in England to require voters to produce photographic ID. Do ensure you bring an acceptable form of identification with you to the polling station.