I've lost count of the number of times I have urged opponents of smoking bans and other hyper-regulation to write to their MP.
There is a simple reason for this. MPs aren't mind readers and we have been told many times that if constituents don't write to them they are unlikely to do anything unless they have a personal interest in the subject.
Thankfully one reader heeded this advice and has just received a reply from her MP. Here are some excerpts:
I do have some sympathy with smokers who feel that government intervention and the "tobacco control lobby" are reaching, if not extending beyond, the limits of acceptable interference in people's lives.
It is, of course, a proven fact that smoking has a significant negative impact on health and I do think young people in particular should be discouraged from taking up the habit. That said, when adults choose to smoke it should be seen as an informed and personal choice and vilification should not be encouraged.
I think we have become far too ready generally to judge others and try to impose on people restrictions that should be nothing to do with the government.
The letter concludes:
I will of course bear in mind your letter when future votes take place in Parliament.
I am heartened by this letter for several reasons, not least because it was written and signed by the MP himself – unlike those ghastly pro-forma replies that people often receive when they write to government ministers.
It has also brought to our attention an MP who had previously gone unnoticed as a potential supporter. I can't tell you how useful that information is.
It demonstrates perfectly the value of writing to your MP. You won't always get the reply you want but the alternative, doing nothing, is not an option if you really want to bring about change rather than moaning about things from the sidelines.
Lots of people (including some bloggers) don't see the point of writing to MPs but this is what campaigning is all about. Quite often it's the little things that matter, not the highfaluting rants that pepper the Internet.
Writing privately to your MP may not provide the same satisfaction as venting your spleen (or preaching to the converted) online, but it can be far more effective.
You may think that writing to your MP is a waste of time but the evidence suggests that, sometimes, it's not. Of course, if several constituents write to their MP on a single issue the impact is significantly greater, and if a group of people in different constituencies was to write to their MPs – well, that's a campaign, and a worthwhile one at that.
Blog, comment and tweet all you want. The effect on MPs is generally very small. (We shouldn't flatter ourselves that MPs are hanging on our every word.) Write to them personally, as a constituent, and the impact will be very much greater.
None of this is rocket science. Unfortunately, far too many people ignore what appears to be a thankless chore in favour of the instant and often shallow gratification you get from commenting online.
Then again, the two are not mutually exclusive so why not do both?