ASK most voters just how much influence they have on their elected representatives in between elections and the answer would be, little, if any.

Local councils generally have an image problem. Residents have a perception that councils do things to them, rather than for them and with them. And that they don’t listen. And as all politicians know, it’s the perception that matters.

So, if as looks likely, the current operators of the Hengistbury Head land train win a reprieve, credit to Bournemouth council, whether it has bowed to public pressure or simply had a rethink.