T OMORROW is an extremely important day for everyone living in Oxfordshire.

For 15 precious hours between 7am and 10pm, those eligible to vote have a once-in-four-years chance to alter the political landscape in the county and European elections.

Many people think that casting a vote doesn’t matter, or will have little chance of making a difference.

How wrong they are.

Here in Oxfordshire all 74 seats on the county council are up for grabs and, when very often only a handful of votes separates the winner from third and fourth place, every man and woman has a duty to have their say. Don’t be fooled into thinking the MPs’ expenses scandal is a matter only for national politics.

This is a chance for you, the people who contribute to the running of services both locally and nationally through rates and other taxes, to boot out a representative of a particular political party, or keep in someone who has done a good job.

What have services been like where you live? Would someone from another other party do a better job? Is it time for a change?

Oxfordshire County Council spends billions of pounds of your money each year on roads, schools and projects like Transform Oxford.

Voting is not compulsory in this country. But if you fail to show up at a polling station today, you have no right to moan about the quality of services for at least the next four years.