It is satisfactory when there’s a positive outcome to a campaign.
Campaigns don’t always succeed: you win some, you lose some.
In July 2013 I had a letter published in The Argus urging readers to join in the campaign to ensure that the England Coast Path included the Isle of Wight.
The then Secretary of State for the Environment, Owen Paterson MP, was resisting this and he used an infelicitous phrase, ‘expensive legacy’ to describe the coast path.
I don’t think I was the only one who was annoyed and it was counter-productive to Mr Paterson’s aims as it spurred me on.
Wiser heads have prevailed and the joyful news has come from the Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) that the England Coast Path is to be extended around the Isle of Wight. It is a good idea to thank someone for making a wise decision. Perhaps readers would like to send similar emails of their own to Mr Dan Rogerson of Defra.
Colin Bennett Lansdowne Place, Hove
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