ALLERDALE council - keep trying to regenerate the area and don't listen to those who say you are wasting time and money!

I've just returned from a wonderful holiday in New Zealand and was absolutely delighted to visit my old stamping ground.

Balclutha is a town of 5,000 people in the Clutha District which has a population of around 17,000 compared with .

It is twice the size of Allerdale with an annual budget of just over £1 million.

If you have never heard of Clutha or Balclutha, the name Kaitangata may ring a bell.

There are a lot of blue collar jobs going in Clutha - mainly in the huge abattoir which is the town's largest employer and in the dairy industry which has taken over from sheep as the area's leading industry.

So the county launched a house, job and life campaign.

Kaitangata had the reputation once ascribed to "Scaryport" but houses and house builds were cheaper there than almost anywhere else in the country.

So, led by Bryan Cadogan, a mayor whose enthusiasm knows no bounds, the county a campaign.

During my visit Bryan took me on a "mayoral" tour of the district and showed me Kaitangata where 13 new properties have been or are in the process of being built - all by people who have come into the area, regenerating the town and the school.

That campaign gained national and international prss coverage lading to inquiries from all over the world.