Listening Liberal might offer some hope

It's no wonder that Nick Clegg is arguably about as involved at the cutting edge of this country's political system as England are in Euro 2008, writes Rural Affairs Editor Nathan Rous.

He comes across as a thoroughly decent chap, but then you could argue he can afford to be given that he will never be in a position where he has to make enemies.

Shame though, as he made quite an impression during his whistle-stop tour of Shropshire. And not just on me.

Rural votes have always played a large part in the Lib Dems' make-up, with two thirds of their seats in areas where the countryside actually matters, so he knows how emotive issues like Post Office closures, forced school mergers and sky-high fuel prices can get communities worked up.

Shropshire has endured its fair share of the above, given that Alastair Darling's approach to Post Office closures has something in common with Sweeney Todd's customer relations skills.

School mergers have proved another hot potato, while fuel prices have a monumental impact across our diverse community: those living off the beaten track have no transport alternative other than a car, while the cost of red diesel is pushing farming costs through the roof.

Seasoned farmer Arthur Hill wasted little time in tackling Mr Clegg at a small get-together at The Fox in Much Wenlock.

Away from the cameras which had trailed the party leader for most of the day (so, it must be said, he could talk about a Tory's decision to resign, rather than a crucial Lib Dem policy) and Mr Clegg did one thing that few politicians ever do: he listened.

Whether it was bovine tuberculosis, nitrates or fuel, he took it all in.

"Three years ago I was paying 12p a litre for diesel," said Arthur. "Two years ago it was 21p; last year the average price was 32.5p and this year it has not been less than 56p.

"I have tractors that cost £21 an hour just for fuel. Put a bloke on the seat and it costs you something like £31 an hour."

The dizzying increase in price mean the cost of production for farmers like Arthur have risen from £84.50 per tonne to £119.50.

Arthur added: "Our need for cash flow is now 30 to 50 per cent higher this year than it was last year to keep up with the costs of production."

Mr Clegg nibbled on a sandwich, sipped his Diet Coke and continued to listen. He even listened when the gathering began to discuss risk-based assessments on nitrate and fertiliser usage and how the EU is meddling in the whole business once again (I won't explain further on the grounds that most of you would rather drink a litre of methylated spirits).

And then came TB, with the farmers pushing for trials to see whether a pilot badger cull would prevent the crisis.

"Everyone seems to be up in arms about a badger being culled but what they don't realise is that we are culling cows all the time," Arthur added.

Mr Clegg agreed, despite admitting that it wouldn't go down well with a lot of people in his party.

"We are completely open to these trials. You are right - Britain's fascination with animals is curious to say the least. But this issue needs to go forward, even though plenty of people in the Liberal Democrats do not like this position."

At least here the Lib Dems can make some sort of impact, lobbying their Euro MPs to make their feelings known in Brussels.

Yet on a broader scale, their ability to set rural communities back on the right track only matches that of our own.

But maybe that is the point: if the Lib Dems haven't given up on Government, no matter how fanciful their end-game might appear, we too shouldn't give up on fighting against school mergers, Post Office closures and fuel rises.

We can all do our bit.