Nik Butler: We should be voting because we expect better information

So the rains came down the floods did not come up and despite the almost constant deluge and downpour from above the various local parties seem likely to batten down their own hatches of disquiet to focus on their messages and manifestos in the hope that an Ark of votes that will carry them to their own safety in numbers.

That’s the trouble with these metaphors though because whilst it was all well and good for Noah, his families, the animals, and if you accept a different origin story his friends, upon that boat the land got absolutely washed out, recreated and reallocated.

Overall it was a bit of a downer if you had been working on new housing development or extending roadways and communication links between the various districts it all had to be begun again.

In reality the soon to be elected members of the next county council when taking office will not wash away the projects of the previous councils but they do get to inherit many of the sins and the good works.

The corporate body of a council continues whilst the management team is reshuffled.

From this perspective you have to ask the questions why on earth would you want to vote or bother to vote if in doing so you do not change the nature of the administrative beast.

If budgets have been allocated and projects are already in the pipeline with contracts in place and assured what can the new county council offer or deliver?

If I were there I would want my fellow councilors to be asking better questions about previous accounting and expenses.

For instance where did the near £6million of high speed broadband money go and how has it been spent?

Just how much is the council spending in paying the claims for damages to motorist vehicles from potholes?

How can West Sussex County Council improve its own provision of information and data in light of Open Government Standards?

Interestingly enough none of these problems are party problems to be answered to the left or the right.

These are issues for administration and procedures to be resolved by any independently thinking councilor.

So try not to let the bright lights of manifesto promises distract you from insisting on better questions being asked.

We should be voting because we expect better information and less fogging of issues.