Letters: ‘Voting is the adult equivalent of writing letters to Santa’

When TV presenter Guy Martin revealed he’d never voted in a recent interview with Big Issue, readers had plenty to say about it.

Responses to Guy Martin saying he has never voted

If you don’t vote it’s a slap in the face to all the people who gave their lives to get you the vote. That doesn’t remove your right not to vote, just don’t complain about outcomes you don’t like. 

Tim Hancock, Facebook

I’m 56 and have never voted and never will. We live in one of the most corrupt countries in the world.

Lee Millington, Facebook

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Me too. When they make manifestos a legally binding document rather than a promise, then I’ll think about it.

Steven Willett, Facebook

Voting is the adult equivalent of writing letters to Santa.

Sam Bliss, Facebook

When all major parties are all equally ineffective and the rising alternative is appealing to hate, it’s quite understandable to step back and want nothing to do with it.

Martin Cochran, Facebook

Don’t vote then don’t moan. Not voting is actually a vote towards the party that you wouldn’t want in…

Shaun Attmassfear, Facebook

The anti-voters are just like, “I don’t like the system so I’m going to actively make it worse, so I can complain more”. But you’ll call it protesting. Right.

Ross Siggers, Facebook

Whoever you vote for, the government gets in.

Michael Brown, Facebook

If you don’t vote in Australia you get fined.

Mick Russell, Facebook

Outside the box

Television is changing, and so is the way it’s delivered into our homes. With broadcast licences due to expire in 2034, the government is reviewing how free-to-air is provided in the future. This creates a natural point to reflect on how best to secure universal access for the long term. 

For millions, free television is an essential public service. The question is not whether free TV should continue, but how it can be delivered most effectively and sustainably. 

For many, watching TV via the internet is already part of everyday life. While around 10 million homes still have an aerial connected, the number relying solely on that aerial is now under one million and continues to decline. While the trend is clear, it is also clear that any future transition must focus on supporting
the minority who are not yet able to stream.

Delivering through both aerial and internet infrastructures involves significant duplicated costs for broadcasters. As audiences continue to move online, policymakers will need to consider how best to protect universal access while ensuring sustainable funding for British public service broadcasting. This is a practical challenge, not an ideological one.

This debate is not about the value of free television, but about whether change could happen too quickly and risk excluding poorer or more vulnerable audiences. Our view is that, with the right planning, it is possible to modernise delivery without undermining universality. 

By acknowledging how television is already being watched, while safeguarding access, we can help futureproof universal, free access for generations.

Jonathan Thompson, Chair of the Future TV Taskforce and CEO of Everyone TV

Cost benefit 

As your article points out, PIP is not an out-of-work benefit so shouldn’t be included in these calculations. Not when the comparison is with a non-disabled person in work.

It could be compared with a disabled person in work also receiving PIP. Also, PIP is only partial compensation for the £1,000+ per month extra costs of being disabled on average. Costs that arise in large part because we all live in a world designed by and for non-disabled people.

So if PIP is being included in the calculations, then those extra costs of disability – that a non-disabled worker doesn’t have to pay, but a disabled worker does – also need to be factored in. It’s sadly unsurprising that a think tank set up by a former DWP minister would use blatant misinformation to incite resentment towards disabled people. At least it’s not coming directly from our current government this time though.

JC Fled, Facebook

Proud moment

The Big Issue in South Africa was the first publication I was ever published in. I was at university at the time and remember driving around Cape Town looking for a vendor to buy the magazine from. @bigissueuk will always have a special place in my heart. Thank you for still publishing such great work for all these years.

Nadianeo, Instagram

Warming to the task

The UK government plans to deliver 1.5 million new homes in England by 2029, including 300,000 social and affordable homes through the £39 billion Social and Affordable Homes Programme. A key concern is whether these homes will be built to lower energy efficiency standards, which could reduce upfront costs but increase running costs and risk fuel poverty.

There are promising alternatives, such as the prefabricated “zero bills” homes recently built in the Wirral. These were highlighted recently in a television programme on home heating presented by Guy Martin, recent star of Letter to my Younger Self.

Mark Dowling

Do you have a story to tell or opinions to share about this? Get in touch and tell us more. 

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