I got on the train at 9.40am on Tuesday and started writing a column about the Wells City of Culture bid. I finished it about half an hour later as Twitter started to buzz about an unexpected statement from the Prime Minister and a possible early election.
It certainly all came as a surprise to me but I do think the PM has done exactly the right thing. However people voted in the referendum last year, I know that the vast majority of people have accepted the result and simply can’t understand how some parties now seem to relish the opportunity to weaken the UK’s hand in the negotiations that will follow. We need a strong Government with strong leadership and a clear mandate to get the best deal for the UK.
But that’s enough on the election, not least because I’ve always strived to keep politics out of this column and the City of Culture bid is too important to get bumped altogether. The bid is a massive opportunity not just for Wells but for Somerset and the wider South West.
To get behind the bid doesn’t require you to be an arts buff. This is about more than opera on the Cathedral Green or art installations in the Market Square. This is about celebrating our shared heritage and culture as part of a programme of events that ranges from local volunteers to the Royal Shakespeare Company. It’s an opportunity for our whole area to show the world who we are, what’s special about our corner of Somerset and to encourage people to come and visit. It will add millions to our visitor economy and will be a catalyst for inwards investment in other parts of our economy too. I hope you’ll support the bid.