You have to pinch yourself sometimes to remember that George Osborne is a northern MP; not that we should judge people on their appearance.
He holds the Tatton seat in Cheshire made famous by its former incumbents, the disgraced Neil Hamilton and his nemesis in a white suit, the former BBC TV reporter Martin Bell.
This is a somewhat particular part of the north, especially in terms of surviving cliches about flat caps or perpetual grime. You will not find the latter in Tatton and the former will only take that tweedy form favoured in rural circles, just as strangely-patterned sweaters are beloved in golf clubs.
But look! The idyll is being disturbed. It hasn't reach Bell-like levels yet, but Osborne is facing growing pressure to come out about controversial plans to redirect the local A556 main road. This cuts a corner by linking the M6 and M56 between Altrincham and Knutsford and was named the UK's most congested commuter route in 2006 by the Department of Transport.
It beat the M26 in Kent, the A404 in Buckinghamshire and even the M25 London ring road, and things have not improved since then. But the Highways Agency's subsequent proposals to by-pass ultra-comfy villages such as Mere have aroused the fury of new targets for the traffic; places such as Hoo Green, High Legh and Millington say that the misery would simply pass to them.
Hence a new option, and calls on Osborne to support it, which will reach a crescendo next week at a meeting in Knutsford. Suzi Cowan of the A556 Lobby Group, which has commissioned transport consultants and called the meeting to publish their findings, says:
None of The Highways Agency options would satisfy the concerns of the affected parishes or indeed the motorist. They would also destroy farmers' land, putting livelihoods and areas of natural beauty at risk.
They would also ruin many rural pursuits for walkers, cyclists and horse riders as the network of lanes which are home to these pleasures. Lanes on which it is difficult for even one car to pass a bicycle will have to host up to 3000 more cars a day.
The new route is also extremely expensive – costing the taxpayer between £137 million and £212 million. We have come up with a simpler plan that will be much more cost effective, does not destroy farmers' livelihoods or the rural living of 6 parishes, and is better for the motorist, as it will allow traffic to travel freely between the M6 and M56 without leaving the motorway therefore improving congestion and hastening their journey.
The suggestion, improving motorway junction arrangements, is the most vigorous of responses submitted to a 12-week consultation which the Highways Agency began in January. Once a decision is made, work is expected to start in March 2015.
Cowan says:
Objections had to be in by the 16th April and ours, plus our alternative plan, were submitted on time. No one knows how seriously opponents' grievances or initiatives will be taken, so we've called this meeting to share and show the proposal. If it wins support, we hope that our combined voices will get much-needed attention from George Osborne and the National Infrastructure Directorate, which oversees plans for highways.
Find out more on Wednesday 30 May, 7.30pm at the Cottons Hotel on the A50 Manchester Road, Knutsford, WA16 0SU. There's more about the lobby group and the controversy here.
