Too many road signs in pothole Somerset

We will always remember last week as the Seven Bed Holiday.
As Caroline has rashly accepted my marriage proposal it was only fair that she meet the rest of my large family.
Changing her mind after the social mingling at our wedding reception in July would be too late.
Unfortunately the nearest relative on the visiting list lives in Coventry with the other 15 randomly scattered in obscure northern counties, so I worked out a 1,000 mile route with us sleeping in a different place each night.
Saturday saw us savouring the Scottish border scenery as we drove along well maintained A and B roads.“Why are there so few potholes here?” I asked.
“In mild Somerset the ‘bad winter’ is blamed for the poor state of our lumpy roads but Northumberland and Scotland have harsher weather.
“I know as I used to live in the north before I saw the error of my ways”.
After a brief discussion we decided the answer was simple. Up there they spend the highway maintenance budget on maintaining the roads. Down here the money is invested in painting the roads and planting forests of distracting warning signs.
In the border country the number of road signs is kept to a minimum, which avoids confusing clutter and preserves the views. Presumably they wish to attract visitors.
Philip Welch

Redundancy hits home

The recession reached our family this week.

My eldest son works in the car industry and took a job with Lexus in Dubai five months ago because people were buying fewer cars here while business was booming in the oil-rich Persian Gulf.

All went well until February, when their twin girls were born. But by then the downturn had reached the United Arab Emirates. Car showrooms where customers used to queue to buy became quiet as the desert and Lexus started laying off staff.

So he phoned on Thursday to wish me happy birthday and tell how he had been made redundant that morning, not what you want as a young father with three small children and a wife to support.

To his credit there was no complaint or gloom. He bore the news with fortitude and dignity.

As he said, you have to regard redundancy as an opportunity to find a better job and improve your life.

He is right, of course, but it will not be easy. There is the sense of rejection to overcome and the need to maintain self-confidence through perhaps months of application forms and interviews while cash reserves diminish.

Our thoughts and hopes are with him, his wife and the grandchildren.

Philip Welch

Support goes both ways

Many readers of the Mendip Messenger contacted us last week to say how sorry they were to see this highly-regarded little magazine close.
It was a sad day here, too, and we were grateful for their kind words of appreciation for the content of the Messenger, whose most popular items have been transferred to this paper in a new weekly section (see page 31).
Unfortunately, kind words do not pay the bills of a free publication. Advertising does, and there was not enough to cover the Messenger’s considerable printing and distribution costs in a recession.
Paid-for titles like the one you are reading are in a much stronger position than frees, for two main reasons.
One: They are collected from newsagents for a small sum rather than needing the publisher to pay someone to deliver them.
Second: The healthier economics of paid-for titles allows them to spend more on the news coverage which readers want.
These are two of the reasons why the roots of the Mid Somerset Series reach back to 1851 and why it will continue to evolve into the next century.However, I would like to make a point which is too easily forgotten.
Readers often ask community newspapers like ours for support. We are happy to oblige whenever possible with free editorial space to help good causes, but “the local” also appreciates a little help itself.
The more support we get from the community in terms of advertising and newspaper sales, the more we can support the community, which is what we want to do.
Philip Welch

Pay them properly

Mendip District Council was right to reject proposals to increase their allowances.
It would have been morally wrong and a public relations disaster to agree a rise while cutting jobs and services.
Tax payers take exception to their elected representatives being well paid or compensated for their hours of work, yet are quick to complain if services are not to the standard they demand.
The fact remains that the allowances paid to councillors in mid-Somerset are too low to attract talented people who need the money.
We rely on small numbers of community-minded volunteers prepared to give their time for the public good while receiving compensation at levels below the minimum wage.
The level of district council allowances is decided by councillors voting on recommendations made by an unpaid Independent Remuneration Panel.I
served on the Mendip panel for six years and quickly came to the conclusion that we should pay our councillors a living wage so we can attract the best candidates.
The politicians were not willing to adopt this course, partly because they respect the tradition of worthy souls willing to serve just for the public good, and partly because they feared an unfavourable reaction from the electorate.
My views remain the same – don’t complain about monkeys if you are only willing to pay peanuts.
Philip Welch