Why I am sitting for parliament

Make the government accountable for its expenditure

- IAN FANTOM

I AM a non-candidate in Halifax for the forthcoming General Election on July 4 this year.

To stand a chance of being elected as an independent MP, you have to have money, charisma, energy, and a campaigning team. I don't have any of those.

And so I'm not standing I'm just sitting.

I could promise all sorts of improvements in local services. The National Health Service needs emergency care. I could work wonders with local transport services. We could raise standards in our schools and make educational establishments less stressful places.

We could reinvigorate our town centre and make it a really attractive place for shopping and entertainment.

I had a dream. I was in London and suddenly found that I had just been elected to parliament. Oops. I was reorganising my commuting timetable between London and Halifax. I might not be able to do all the things I'd promised, but never mind; it's someone else's fault.

Well, yes, without significant funding from the government, we'd have to cut back. More government money could be forthcoming via the West Yorkshire mayor. The regional mayors are becoming regional dictators, taking power from the local councils. But never mind; that's someone else we could blame, too.