The longevity of a newspaper story is reputed to be no more than tomorrows chip  papers. That of course is only understandable in a context where fish and chips is part of the staple fare. Whilst the ubiquitous Macdonalds or KFC may have taken over from fish and chips as the ‘fast food’ of choice in many communities, in some places the fish and chip shop still on lives in the hearts and minds of the residents. Liverpool is certainly one of those locations, although there is no reason to suggest that the Big Mac or Family Bucket has not penetrated into the North West as effectively as elsewhere in the UK.

Liverpool is home to a number of other cultural identities or points of view than what people eat for their evening meal. One of these in the light of the terrible events of Hillsborough in 1989 was the way in which one of our daily newspapers reported on the events of that tragedy. The Sun did not make up the stories it reported about Liverpool fans being drunk, urinating on police officers or pickpocketing during the crush, but unlike the other papers reporting from the same sources it used a headline to state these stories as being the truth. It took the newspaper 23 years to apologise for this failure of journalism. Because of this history the newspaper is sold in only very small numbers in the city to this day.

The latest episode in this story is in the context of the World Cup, the newspaper had contracted with Royal Mail to deliver the newspaper with its special World Cup planner to homes across the UK. Anticipating the problem for this with post office staff in the Liverpool postcode area, that is one part of the country that was to be denied their free paper. However what the Sun and the Royal Mail had failed to appreciate is that the Merseyside region extends beyond the L postcode, and that Liverpool FC is a club with supporters far beyond the boundaries of Merseyside. Hence the refusal by Royal Mail staff in large areas of the NW to handle a newspaper that is reviled by many.

As one isolated incident this story is nothing more than a chip paper for another day. However in the context of the closure of the News of the World following the campaign by ‘Hacked Off’ and the more recent and less significant offence caused by a dishonest headline in the Mail on Sunday over the work of foodbanks, it is clear that as consumers and workers we do have some power to change the market place in which our newspapers operate. I personally argued for people to respond to the Mail story by refusing to buy a copy on the following Sunday. I am sure my comments made little difference, particularly as few people I know personally read, let alone buy a copy. However as a regular visitor to Merseyside, having been born in a suburb of the city, I know just how effective widespread the rejection of the Sun is. This is a grudge by a whole region.

In 11 months time we get to elect 650 MPs to run our country. Whilst we might be used to the antics of a few of them, in the light of the recent Newark by-election over a year after Patrick Mercer was caught with his hand in the till perhaps we need to act? After all the evidence of his crime was clear, and yet even now the Government is offering to let us recall our MP only if their colleagues demand it or they are prosecuted first. We know how much Patrick Mercers colleagues were unhappy with his behaviour from the deafening silence for a year before he was threatened with a six month suspension!. Eleven months is plenty of time for people to register as candidates in seats where complacency means the dominant party assumes the outcome is a done deal, just as in Newark. We know that UKIP are targeting 20 or so of the most winnable seats for them. This really does not change the political culture. One more beast competing at the same water hole for space to drink alongside the other parties. What if in some of the 500 or so safe seats individuals who are Independent of any party stood as candidates. If a dozen were to be elected the impact on the cozy club at Westminster would be a great deal more than 1 or 2 UKIP MPs that might find their way to the Green benches. Is it possible for ordinary people to change the political context in the same way as some postmen from Liverpool have spoilt the plans of powerful News International to flood their region with the Sun?