A Good Evening with Paddy

They would have you believe that no-one is interested in politics any more and that public meetings are dead. Yet on Thursday evening more than 400 people flocked to Thornbury Leisure Centre to hear former Lib Dem leader Paddy Ashdown reflecting on the current political situation at home and abroad and to answer questions on a wide range of issues. Paddy is rightly respected across the political spectrum, and it was his answers on foreign affairs and defence issues that were particularly eagerly sought. Although Paddy spoke and answered questions for over an hour, we could easily have gone on for twice that long. I think there is a real appetite for people who speak their mind and who know what they are talking about. It was great to see so many people at the meeting and gives you a bit of hope amidst some of the gloom about public attitudes to the political process.