This time next week we’ll either know who (along with the EU Commission) will be governing our country for the next five years, or some tense negotiations between various parties will have the country even more fired up about politics than it is now. Whatever the outcome, I reckon it’s going to make for an interesting five years for us – but will they be bad or good years, I wonder?

What I have been enjoying is the way so many people are engaging with the process this time around, even if, like me, they’re in a constituency where one candidate has such a huge majority that they feel their vote doesn’t count. I have to agree; our country’s voting system is highly undemocratic, but so is life, isn’t it? And I wouldn’t dream of choosing to opt out of voting any more than I would choose to opt out of life itself. Safe seat or not, a huge swing in support at least sends a strong message to those who’ll end up in the hot seats!

A survey commissioned by IdealPro, which polled more than 2,000 plumbers and installers last week, revealed that 32% want whoever formed the government, to make supporting small businesses its top priority.

On the subject of employment and boosting the economy, 59% feel politicians need to do more to support apprenticeships and training initiatives, to create more opportunities for young people to get into key trades and help plug the skills shortage.

Some 29% are yet to decide how they’ll vote – although it doesn’t look good for Ed Miliband with just 14% set to vote for Labour – and 55% of respondents saying he’s the leader they’d most like to flush down the drain! Some 34% will be voting Conservative and just 1% will vote Liberal Democrat. The remaining 17% will vote for either the SNP, the Green Party or UKIP, while 7% are not planning to vote at all.

I’ll be writing next week’s leader feeling decidedly bleary eyed, having sat up all night to see how things pan out. I’m keen to see how our nation’s plumbers and installers’ voting patterns reflect those of the wider population…

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Yours,

Jan Hobbs