THE Green Party fielding candidates for every contested ward in the forthcoming council elections is good news.

We say this not because of any party political affiliation; like any local newspaper worth its salt, we shun any such affiliation and are loyal only to you, our readers.

Rather, the increased Green presence at the hustings is good for democracy across the borough.

The greater the choice available to the electorate, the greater the chance that any given voter will be motivated to cast a ballot.

Turnout statistics for the last few local council elections are readily available online and make for depressing reading. There have been cases in which barely a third or even a quarter of those eligible to vote have done so.

It is a similar story throughout the country, and there are commentators who claim voter laziness is the cause. We are not among those commentators. Survey after survey suggests that many voters feel the selection of options available to them is too limited.

It stands to reason, therefore, that expanding the range of options can only encourage more people to feel they have a stake in the proceedings.

Democracy belongs to all of us, so it is imperative that none of us should feel we lack a selection which fits our beliefs.

We urge every eligible voter to make sure they’re registered well in advance of the coming elections. Some people do not believe voting makes a difference, but if enough people exercise their democratic rights they cannot fail to make a difference.