By Tim Murgatroyd

So here we are, already three weeks into the general election campaign. The airwaves and social media echo with raised voices.

Accusations are tossed into the air like handfuls of barbed confetti at a wedding where the bride and groom’s families loathe each other.

Incompetence or sheer dishonesty, cover-ups or hiding from the electorate, jabbing fingers . . . Oh, we get plenty.

Sometimes it feels like wading through a blizzard of words. What seems to get frozen first is your faith in our society’s ability to pick a rational route to a warmer, better future – and I’m not referring to that holiday in the sun you may or may not have booked this summer.

Still, however infuriating the process can feel, we should never take our democracy for granted.

And that’s why I’d like to offer a few suggestions how to make it through to June 8 with SOME level of sanity intact. Who knows, the election might even feel like fun with the right attitude.

First off, try to keep an open mind. Now I’m aware many of us vote along tribal lines taught by our parents (and sometimes grandparents) so that your cross on the ballot box always lands in the same party’s box. And consistency can be a great virtue.

But let’s face it, such habits can make the election deadly dull. Why bother listening to the “opposition’s” (whoever they may be in your case) policies? Or for that matter, why find out your chosen party’s policies? After all, you intend to vote for them whatever they promise.

York Press:

No, to make things interesting, I propose listening and thinking about ALL the parties’ positions on matters that concern you and your family. Naturally, everyone has different priorities. That’s what democracy is for. And thank goodness for that.

In my case, it’s the NHS funding crisis, education cuts, the housing crisis, and how politicians intend to deal with the shocking levels of poverty and inequality in the UK.

I’m also keen to know how the parties intend to make sure wealthy people contribute their fair share of taxes. But we all have different political axes to grind.

Next, I would suggest a little party game (excuse the awful pun). Key participants in the election have decided it should be about what makes for a strong leader.

We’re told that without a strong leader we will be like a ship without a rudder, a hot air balloon without a gas burner.

My game is this: watch each of the party leaders closely and ask yourself if their style of carrying on represents strong and effective leadership. Naturally, everyone has prejudices when it comes to that question.

Some admire being “bloody difficult”. Others praise leaders who seek to empower people in their own communities and workplaces. Some believe strong, decisive leaders are like captains on the poop deck, that their word should be law for five years once they’ve been elected. Others laboriously seek consensus in the hope groups of people can move forward together.

Of course, a key test is whether leaders are likely to negotiate a good deal for Brexit, especially as the EU seems to hold most of the cards in the negotiations.

Will the best deal come through threatening them at dinner parties with undefined sanctions or being flexible enough to find mutually beneficial compromises?

Above all, the winning leader in my personal party game will be the one who is most compassionate towards those in the UK and world who need help most.

One with policies that ensure marginalised sections of the population receive a larger share of our wealthy nation’s resources.

My final suggestion for a sane election is to keep your sense of humour. Power and the powerful always invite mockery and satire. It’s part of the British way.

And there’s certainly something amusing about “strong” leaders of whatever party surrounding themselves with their own supporters or refusing to speak to the press unless they have the questions in advance or just repeating sound bites day after day.

You have to laugh or you might cry.