OVERHEARD in a hospital corridor: “Is it true Ronald Reagan fired all the striking US air traffic controllers, stripped out the dead wood and re-hired at a lower pay-bill?” “Yup, they were being unreasonable and thought they were bomb-proof.” “So, are we being unreasonable?” “A 35% claim says we are up there, that is for sure.”

Reagan’s win-lose bloody-mindedness was high risk and divisive. The outcome to the current disputes in the NHS needs to be win-win. The only way to achieve that is through dialogue. There will be talks. There will be a settlement. So, the message for both sides is to get on with it before even more people suffer unnecessarily.

I was cheered to hear from our local Water Guardians that constructive engagement on water quality is starting to happen in North Dorset. Funded by Wessex Water, Dorset Wildlife Trust co-ordinates and provides training for anyone prepared to volunteer to walk their stretch of river once a month. I hear, though, there are continuing concerns beyond sewage outflows including the levels of agricultural additives and riverbanks broken down by livestock. Water quality is a whole community matter and demands holistic solutions. Please join in.

More than any other topic, conversations on the doorstep turn to the cost of living. Why, people ask, is the Government not doing more to rein in the profiteering and knee-jerk rises in the cost of every service and amenity? The big underlying drivers of increased cost are moderating. Let us now see the Government getting on to the front foot to prevent any repetition – some of the necessary action in Energy, Transport and the Environment will be long-term, though, and that is inconvenient with elections just around the corner.

Our research shows up other frustrations. How can the Government have allowed dentistry deserts to occur? How can they continue to fail to build enough houses? How can they be planning to fail an increasingly ageing population?

For too long they have been off-piste pursuing myths and fantasies, short-term solutions and pandering to the rich and powerful.

Does any of this matter to North Dorset? Yes. We suffer here from the national problems of inflation, lack of investment and other incentives and levers for improved productivity and a better quality of life. We also have a continuing local failure to meet housing needs, an apparent disregard of community needs for amenities and services, diminishing rural transport, an utter lack of vision for the future prosperity of smaller communities and the same old, same old personal ambitions and agendas of a domineering clique. Time for change. Time for opportunity and fairness. Bournemouth, Poole and Christchurch this May. Dorset Council next.