Young shavers, social media and a newspaper's manifesto
- Published
What do you want from what the young people on Twitter refer to as #GE2015?
If you're a Daily Post, external reader, the chances are that you'd like to see, among other things, "radically better health care, better roads and and more money for schools".
Fair enough, you might think - who wouldn't want better health care, roads and schools? The slight flaw in the argument is that those three issues are the responsibility of politicians who are not standing in the general election.
The money may come from Westminster, but those issues are devolved - and decided by how you vote in next year's elections to the National Assembly for Wales.
I highlight these issues not to suggest ignorance on the part of a newspaper but to show just how limited understanding of the current devolution settlement is among voters.
Last June, a BBC Wales poll suggested fewer than half of us know who runs the NHS..
Five years ago, the Conservatives were criticised for displaying in Wales posters in which an air-brushed David Cameron announced "I'll cut the deficit, not the NHS".
With the (devolved) NHS one of the key issues for voters this time round, all the political parties appear to have decided to put reflecting the concerns of voters above devolution purity. Even parties devoted to fighting elections only in Wales will have lots to say on the NHS in this campaign.
You could argue that the Daily Post survey, external is not the most scientific ever run. One of the answers to a question that suggests Wales is under-funded is "yes, the gap in funding between Wales and England must be finally dealt with". (Public spending in Wales is higher per head than in England so it's unclear what the "gap" is.)
But perception is everything in politics and if voters are worried about devolved issues, for the next five weeks few candidates are going to dismiss their concerns.
The challenge may come in a few months when voters start to ask where their better health, education and roads are - and the local MP suggests they look beyond Westminster.
UPDATE: The Daily Post editor has responded to my blog here., external