I am, naturally, angry that a small minority of members of an institution I aspire to join have abused the rules, seemingly, to benefit themselves.  The behaviour of these MP's causes voters to question the motives of all of us who hope to serve our communities as Members of Parliament.  And though many hundreds of MPs continue to deserve an honourable reputation; we seem to be finding all Parliamentarians, and candidates, guilty by association.
 
As this story continues to develop some commentators predict that this scandal will mark an end to democracy as we know it.  This may be correct if the mainstream political parties are abandoned in favour of extreme groups who, if you scratch the surface, are far more abhorent than even the most suspect expenses claim.  If these predictions do prove to be the case then democracy will, undoubtedly, be murdered with a jackboot. 
 
On the other hand this situation could be the making of democracy in the United Kingdom.  
 
Let's face it, many people have no idea who their political candidates are.  This is despite the work we all undoubtedly do with our limited resources to try and get our respective messages out.  At election time many people simply vote red, blue, yellow or green.  As a result of this some voters will now be ashamed of the person who now represents them.
 
Though party politics provides us with a useful 'shorthand' way of either choosing our representatives or sending a message to our leaders, I sincerely believe that democracy will become stronger if we learn from recent events and make more informed decisions when choosing which individual is most likely to represent our own values and aspirations. 
 
We recently saw this idea in action in the United States when many conservatives became members of 'Republicans for Obama' because they believed that Barack Obama was the best person for the job.  We also saw it in 1997 when the Labour and Lib Dem candidates agreed to stand aside in favour of Martin Bell as an alternative to the discredited Neil Hamilton.  I don't think anyone can seriously say that democracy suffered when President Obama took office or Martin Bell was elected.
 
So as we prepare for local and European elections in the short term and the General Election in the longer term I urge voters to go beyond party spin and media hype and get to know your candidates.  Make an informed choice and ensure that democracy comes through as the overall winner.