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Linda Walton writes: There are reasons to be cheerful
It's eight am on June 7, the rain is pouring down threatening to blight Farm Open Day which a number of our local farmers are supporting, and I am wondering what on earth I can find to write about that can lift my sense of gloom.
Why am I feeling so down-in-the-dumps?
I put it down to the corroding effect of reading, for nearly a month in the national press, about scandal, resignations and reshuffles.
Should such matters really drive off the front pages proper debate and discussion about things like the European elections, the campaign for which has passed almost unnoticed despite the fact that the results will impact all our lives to a greater or lesser extent?
Of course there is no 'should' in the world of journalism; newspaper editors print stories that will sell their paper, and we all love tales about other human beings.
A colleague of mine who, like me, has been following every revelation said to me last week that it would all be quite funny if the impact wasn't so tragic for the country.
So, looking for some rays of sunshine, I turned to where I should have turned in the first place - home.
Leafing through the local papers I've found lots of reasons to be cheerful. We've had one of the highest turnouts in our local elections for some time and quite a few recounts - signs that here in the Vale we're thinking harder about who to vote for.
Our local Business Link has successfully bid for 5m of government funding for Aylesbury Vale farmers - and it's a local man from Wendover, who knows our area, who's going to administer it.
Work continues on our town centre - though it would be even better if the housing projects could get back on stream.
Aylesbury College has come up with an imaginative idea for increasing opportunities for apprenticeships by paying the salaries themselves and 'hiring' them out to businesses - so small businesses get the benefit of young talent without the associated employment costs which are so crippling to entrepreneurs.
Fantastic, practical, 'getting on with the job' stuff - all happening despite the shenanigans at Westminster.
And, talking of apprentices and potentially some more good news, I see we now have a national 'Enterprise Czar' in the shape of Sir Alan Sugar, businessman, property owner and television star.
My organisation, the Federation of Small Businesses, has come out in support of the appointment as we have been campaigning for an honest broker to work with banks and other sources of lending to make sure that not one single small business is allowed to fail unnecessarily.
However his brief, at the moment, is unclear. What do you think Sir Alan should do to help the country's economy and therefore us here in Buckinghamshire?
Let me know and, through the FSB, I'll let him know.
Finally I'd like to pay tribute to all the local people who have shown personal commitment to the Vale by standing for our county council.
We know that from time to time we give you a hard time; we know that you take decisions that we don't all always like and that we are always castigating you to do better. But you stand up to be counted and put in many hours of your private time in the interests of our community.
Thank you.
Well, I feel much more cheerful now. Time has passed, the sun's come out and I'm going to forsake The Archers omnibus edition on Radio 4 and go out to look round my local farm.
Ian Waller, the proprietor, is currently Farmers' Weekly Countryside Farmer of the Year, committed to environmentally responsible farming as well as being a successful local businessman.
It should be fascinating. Let's hope that by the time I write to you again the world feels like a slightly more rational and normal place.
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Weather for Aylesbury
Thursday 09 February 2012
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: -0 C to 2 C
Wind Speed: 6 mph
Wind direction: South west
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: -4 C to 2 C
Wind Speed: 14 mph
Wind direction: South east
