I think Councillor Heron - leader of New Forest District Council - is on to me, since he wrote a message to me this morning reassuring me that things were happening and that he only needs a few more pieces of information before he writes to me formally. I think he had put me into his diary the day before he knows I would have started to nag. In fact, he should be delighted to be able to make some progress now, given that he has been trying to get changes made for almost a decade; I should think that he is as pleased as we are to have the council's backing on this. 

Some of you will know that the Forest is monitored, managed, preserved and protected by a range of organisations - the National Park Authority, Forestry England, The Verderers, National Trust, Natural England and so on, with a number of other interested parties all involved too - the Commoners Defence Association, The New Forest Association, The New Forest Road Awareness group  - and not forgetting the police. When these groups collaborate, they can effect positive changes - there have been some great initiatives in raising awareness of road safety for example - but when they grind against each other time starts to stand still. Despite the fact that the Commoner's Defence Association say that they already have enough evidence to show that Average Speed Cameras are feasible, I hope that all of the authorities will be able to stand behind the results of an independent feasibility which I hope will be thorough and carried out efficiently. In the meantime animals are still dying and so we need to get a move on.

This photograph denotes that we should not let cobwebs gather and that the authorities need to work in unison. With very kind permission of Gary Orris