Compulsory voting would shake up our political life for the better

THE biggest winner in the British local election was not the Conservative Party, although the Tories did better than anyone – including themselves – expected.

The real winner was the postal vote. For the second time running, a huge jump in postal votes was registered by those councils experimenting with that method.

On average, the postal turnout was 50% of the potential, as compared with 35% elsewhere. In some cases, it went as high as 60%. Does this mean an end to all the talk of voter apathy? Not a chance. As insults go, voter apathy is a frequent flier. During elections, pundits call the voters doorsteps. As in: "What we're hearing from the doorsteps "