The Right Reverend Tim Dakin, Bishop of Winchester, is appealing for people to vote

The Right Reverend Tim Dakin, Bishop of Winchester, is appealing for people to get involved in the General Election in May.

It comes after he worked alongside the House of Bishops of the Church of England to send a letter to parishes across the country expressing hopes for political parties to create a new vision.

The letter read: “In Britain, we have become so used to believing that self-interest drives every decision, that it takes a leap of imagination to argue that there should be stronger institutions for those we disagree with as well as for those on our side.”

The letter defended the right of the church to enter into the political arena: “The claim that religion and political life must be kept separate is, in any case, frequently disingenuous – most politicians and pundits are happy enough for the churches to speak on political issues so long as the church agrees with their particular line.”

In closing, the bishops wrote: “Unless we exercise the democratic rights that our ancestors struggled for, we will share responsibility for the failures of the political classes. It is the duty of every Christian adult to vote, even though it may have to be a vote for something less than a vision that inspires us.