It’s polling day in Hove and the weather is warm and sunny, so it’s a beautiful day to exercise your democratic right and cast your vote in today’s European Parliamentary Elections.

What with all the hoo-har over moats, mortgages, duck islands and Celia Barlow’s bathroom, it’s very easy and understandable to switch off from politics, turn on ‘Eastenders’ and convince ourselves that we have no power as ordinary folk.

Whether you vote or not today, people will still be elected to positions of power and will spend the next few years or so making decisions that will have an impact on your life. Having just voted myself, I can tell you that the ballot paper is almost two feet long, has a choice of 15 parties and it took several folds to make it small enough to fit in the ballot box. Therefore, with so much choice, you should find it difficult not to find someone on there that agrees with you.

I don’t deny that our political system isn’t in need of some vast improvements, but it’s all that we have at the moment and not voting is not going to help change things.

You also might also like to consider the cost involved in holding such elections. Whether or not a low turnout is predicted, there still has to be enough ballot papers printed should everyone on the electoral register turn up to vote. I’m sure they also need a few spare just in case any get spoilt. Therefore, when the turnout is low, most ballot papers go to waste. In such cash conscious times shouldn't we all be voting, even if it is just to make sure the ballot paper that our council tax money would have gone towards printing gets used ?

Polling stations will be open until 10pm this evening.