I can have a rant or a rave about anything, but it never seems to change much.

But this year I am feeling horribly neglected!

Why, you may well ask – or not, as the case may be.

Well let me tell you.

As I penned these few short paragraphs, there was a little over a week to go until the annual council elections.

And while my views may not count for a lot, my vote should.

But not one of the political parties has yet bothered to go as far as putting an election leaflet through my door – the only offering to date being the one that, fairly obviously, states that fascism and similar political traits are wrong.

And while the prospective councillors and their colleagues have ignored my letterbox, they have also been ignoring my doorbell.

Not one of them, it seems, is curious to see which way my household will be voting this year.

Don't get me wrong – I don't need lengthy political debates on my doorstep while my evening meal goes cold in another room.

Nor do I need summoning from the shower by repeated knocking of the type which would suggest a major catastrophe was taking place down the road.

But this is the 29th consecutive year in which I will be casting a vote.

And never before can I remember being so cruelly ignored by the political parties who should be vying for my vote.

If any of the prospective councillors or their colleagues are now thinking about ending my pre-election neglect I have a couple of tips for them.

First of all, don't look under Edward in the electoral roll, as a peculiar family tradition means I use my middle name.

What is my first name ... come on, you'll have to work a little harder than that for my vote!

Secondly, and much more importantly, if you are thinking of coming to talk to me please adopt this approach: "Hello Mr Lee, I'm Candidate X of party Y, if you vote for me we intend to do Z."

That is an approach that might attract my attention.

But if you try the alternative approach of: "Hello Mr Lee, I'm Candidate X of party Y, vote for me because party Z is rubbish," the next thing you see will be my front door and you will have had wasted a trip.

Last year, one party representatiove knocked on my door, but it can only have been seeking reassurance that I was going to use my vote in their direction once again.

When, however, I looked at the leaflets and promises I realised the only reason they thought I should vote for this party was that the others were worse.

So here, in a simple nutshell, is an easy way of any of the parties – well almost any of them, because there are certain things I could never bring myself to do on election day – to earn a vote.

When you have solved the "what's Edward really called" conundrum and tracked down my home address, fill my letterbox with positive news that would be good for the future of Burnley.

I will stack them all up in piles, count them up and sheer weight of numbers will get my vote!