Making civics education compulsory would be a step forward for the nation

The best protest you can make is to vote. (Image: Bevan Conley)

Mon, 14 Jul 2025

An occupational hazard of being a columnist is that you have a lot of opinions, and these do not always emerge at the optimal moment.One soapbox I have been caught awkwardly perched upon recently is the civic duty to do jury service.In social situations I’ve railed against people who felt it was an abomination that they should be forced to listen to details of a murder, in the first case, and a rape in the other.No-one looks forward to sitting on a jury, but the prospect that once or twice in our adult lives we may have to step up is a re...

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