Voter apathy and angst

Having left the country for less than two weeks, I have returned to find that Great British Bake Off presenter Sue Perkins has been hounded from Twitter, having been named as a potential vacancy filler at Top Gear; we're at the start of a three-month heatwave; and that Ed Miliband is as popular as Justin Bieber among teenage girls.

I thought that visiting New York would restore my confidence in Great Britain as a place of pastoral calm and progress, but the tight grip of election fever has unsettled this. I fear that if I go away again I'll come back to find Chris Grayling in a Tory leadership battle with BoJo. No, surely not...

Already, this feels like the longest election campaign in memory. The ticker has been counting down daily and, as we approach single digits, we are inundated with nonsense from the overflowing well of spin, mudslinging, and never-ending bacon sandwich jibes. With mixed messages from the main parties, it has fallen upon lawyers to tell it how it is.

Two significant events took place in London this week and both were bittersweet occasions. The Vote for Justice rally in Westminster saw lawyers from across the country gather to determine who we should vote for. Former Lord Justice of Appeal Sir Alan George Moses regretfully acknowledged that only the Green Party has committed to reversing the estimated £700m cuts to legal aid, and that access to justice 'seems to figure at the very bottom of concern in this election'.

At the same event, Sir Anthony Hooper called on lawyers to withdraw their services, should the Conservatives return to power. Although we have seen walkouts before, they had, disappointingly, little long-term impact, garnering only a few headlines and memorable photos of protesting barristers accessorised with designer handbags. Unfortunately, among the lawyers I have spoken to, there is voter apathy. Sir Anthony disagrees and supported calls for all lawyers to register their vote against either coalition party.

This week also saw the tenth anniversary of the Young Legal Aid Lawyers (YLAL). Since its inception, the group has become a strong and positive voice in promoting access to justice. You can read more about the event here and can visit our Twitter handles, @SJ_Weekly and @YLawyer, for live tweets from the event. All at SJ are very happy to have the YLAL as a regular contributor.

For now, the void left by the reduction in legal aid must be filled and there are ways we can all help. Once again, the SJ Team will be pounding the streets with thousands of other lawyers in the London Legal Support Trust's annual 10km walk. There is still time to register ahead of 18 May, but for those who consider walking a spectator sport, please sponsor us by visiting SJ's fundraising page. Other walks and events that take place across the country throughout the year support the work of essential legal advice centres.

Finally, thank you to John for stepping in during my absence last week. You will be seeing more of his face in your inboxes from now as he will be introducing the magazine from time to time in his new role as deputy editor.

Kevin Poulter, editor at large 

@kevinpoulter | editorial@solicitorsjournal.co.uk

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