Fore!

I am immensely priveleged to chair the Audit and Resources Sub-Committee at Somerset County Council. This has enabled me to come into contact with some of the most able officers currently giving service anywhere in English local government. I must single out the unflappability and good nature of Roger J Kershaw, Corporate Director of Resources, whose honesty in all things financial is a shining beacon to us. Naturally I would also include our Chief Executive who has lifted the entire council from merely average to absolutely superb. It is his efforts that should be most applauded. And if, after the June elections, my party is returned to office I will be championing the cause of our senior officers to my colleagues. These are people we would be proud to work with. They know their stuff. And I know they know because they tell me so.

Teeing Off

When my political colleagues and golfing companions heard that I was about to launch a "blog" there was an collective intake of breath. You could have cut the silence that followed with a knife. But when I explained my reasoning the scales began to lift and the reactions were far more positive. I have been involved in Somerset politics for twenty years. I know the major players very well and have grown to like so many of them. It would be easy to pretend that partisanship divides elected members into cosy party groupings out of which they must never stray. The truth, however, is the precise opposite. I have learned to respect a number of my political opponents. I have gained their trust. This little column may help explain the way I work with others. And I will, from time to time, impart a few tales from the fairways.