It would be impossible to write anything today without making reference to the sad news that Baroness Thatcher has passed away. I first met her when I was sixteen years old, and she encouraged me to join the Conservative Party. I had the pleasure of meeting her many times over subsequent decades and was always struck by her sense of purpose and her personal encouragement. She was a formidable Prime Minister and a distinguished Parliamentarian, and my thoughts are with her family at this difficult time.

There is always a lot going on in the Buckingham constituency, but it seems to have been even busier than usual of late. Happily, a lot of my commitments are ones I enjoy thoroughly, such as the recent Long Crendon Horticultural Society show, at which I had the honour to present the prizes. The displays were absolutely beautiful in many cases, and I was that they the Society is developing the youth category in the competition. It is so important that the next generation develop an enthusiasm for the work and traditions of their local community.

In spite of the persistently cold weather, it is always lovely to see spring arriving in the area. I always feel very privileged to be able to represent such a beautiful constituency, and this sentiment resonated with me again a couple of weeks ago when I heard the excellent news that Aylesbury Vale District Council has rejected the application to build a windfarm in Stoke Hammond. The council agreed with the Stop Dorcas Lane Turbines campaign group that the development would constitute a visual blight on the area, and I am delighted that they saw sense on this issue.

It is such a pity that similar proposals are being mooted in other areas of the constituency such as Cow Pasture Farm and Dinton. I will always do what I can to help local people campaigning against such schemes, and consider this to be one of my most important roles as a Member of Parliament.

On a related note, there is a chink of hope with respect to HS2, to which I remain implacably opposed. In a recent decision by the High Court, Justice Ouseley agreed that the recent consultation on property blight and compensation was fundamentally flawed; indeed, he claimed the process was “so unfair as to be unlawful”. This is a wake-up call for the Government: they need to know that they cannot ride roughshod over people’s livelihoods without fairly and adequately compensating them.