A regional daily has launched a wide-ranging opinion survey to create a snapshot of life in the region.

The Express and Star is running its Your Say survey all this week so readers can give their views on the issues that affect them, with the aim that politicians and service providers will take notice of it.

Hundreds of people have already taken part in the poll, which asks 10 questions each day in the paper and online on issues such as how cuts have affected local services to shopping choices and social habits.

Local MPs have backed the survey, which is thought to be the biggest independent poll held in the Black Country and Staffordshire.

Editor Adrian Faber said he hoped the survey would provide “a valuable snapshot of life in this region as we enter 2013″.

He said: “We hope the findings of the survey will provide an insight into the priorities and concerns of our readers, something that service providers like councils and the police will take notice of.

“An essential role of the Express and Star is to give readers a voice and we want that voice to be as powerful as possible.”

Ian Austin, Labour MP for Dudley North, said: “This is a brilliant initiative for the Express and Star and I have no doubt that councillors, MPs and the people running public services will be watching the results very carefully.

“This is exactly the sort of thing a community newspaper should be doing – listening to local people and highlighting their opinions on the things they care about.”

The Your Say survey comes on the back of last year’s Black Country Census on community identity and the Shropshire Survey run by sister title the Shropshire Star, which generated more than 7,500 replies on life in the county.