I ALWAYS feel that the second week in September is the time we can be guaranteed to see the very best of the spirit of south Cumbria.

The second Thursday of the month is the date of the Westmorland County Show, which is always a brilliant event. Sadly this year the run of good weather we have seen in previous few years came to a bit of an abrupt end and we saw a lot more mud around than we have been used to.

Yet tens of thousands still turned up to wander around admiring the magnificent animals and looking at the endless trade stalls. As many of you said “it’s just a bit of mud, it’ll soon wash out”.

Whether it was the prospect of being under the cover of our little tent or the joy of my company, many of you even stopped by our stand to have a chat and sign our Not a Penny Less petition demanding that the government commit to maintaining the support that farmers get from the EU beyond 2020.

The government has committed to maintaining the support up to 2020 but that is really only one year beyond the expected date when we would leave the EU so it really isn’t much of a commitment at all. A study I have seen has suggested that about a third of the farmers in the North West of England would go bust without their EU grants.

Farmers need to be able to plan many years in advance, a cow that is just starting to produce milk now could easily still be producing milk several years after the commitment made by our government expires. You cannot wander around the cattle displays at the County Show thinking about what would enhance your herd if you don’t know what they are going to be earning in four years' time.

The day after Westmorland Show is usually the Torchlight Procession as indeed it was this year. Again sadly the weather was not as good as it has been but still plenty of people turned out to cheer us along as we paraded through town. This year I was particularly proud to be part of the Kendal Organ Donor Town float. We were trying to raise awareness of the campaign to make Kendal an Organ Donor Town and boost the number of organ donors across the country. The weather certainly did not seem to reduce the noise made by those of you who came along. Thanks to everyone who shouted their support and gave so generously to our collection we were all very very grateful.

If for whatever reason, whether it was the weather or something else, you couldn’t come along to either event and you would like to demonstrate your south Cumbrian spirit by supporting either cause then it’s certainly not too late; searching the internet will give you the information you need. Please do, they are both very important and worthwhile campaigns.