To see Airbourne this year it will cost you a fiver a day – although it's 2 for 1 in the Herald if you book in advance.

I've heard that sales aren't exactly buoyant for these tickets – and it's not really surprising. You have to book tickets for a particular day, even though the event is four weeks away, and if it rains on the day you want to go, you don't get a refund.

I really think the council is miles away from public opinion on this. There's a real feeling in the town that Airbourne will be a shadow of it's former self this year. It's such a shame.

If fewer people than normal turn up, then the trade stands that provide the regular income for the council will be disappointed this year, and less likely to come next year, meaning the price will either go up more in 2009, or the show will come to an end, or be downgraded. The knock on effects could be dreadful.

The pay to stand scheme was suggested two years ago when I led the council, but we rejected it as we believed then, and still do that the event is something so special for our town that we should be doing all we can to build on it, rather than threaten it.

With an economic slowdown, and rising costs everywhere (official inflation at 3.8%, although in reality much higher), now is hardly the time to say to local people, who are already paying the highest council tax ever, that they have to fork out a further £20 each just to see the show.

The Local Government Minister announced last week that when new legislation comes in, if a community gets a petition up of five per cent of the population, the council would be obliged to hold a public meeting.

There have been calls for a public meeting over charging for Airbourne, but the council has resisted. They're lucky they can get away with it. Had the new powers been accepted already they would have had to be accountable for this decision to charge before it happened. There's no doubt the five per cent number would have been easily achieved.

I have suggested before in this column how the council can get out of their dilemma over this – I hope they take up the challenge - there just isn't the buzz about the show this year that there normally is, and the council needs to act quickly.

Let's look at another example. Eastbourne Extreme. This great event happened over this weekend. But there was hardly any advertising for it.

I had assumed the Herald on Friday would have been full of what was happening and when – but I couldn't find even a mention of the event.

I went down on Saturday afternoon – and it was quite busy, but not exactly buzzing. Why was this kept such a secret?

Perhaps the Herald readership is the wrong demographic for such a show? I don't think so; I know loads of people that didn't realise what was happening in town over the weekend, and if they had, they would have been there.

Have a good week everyone...