Congratulations to the Leeds City Council entry at this year’s Chelsea Flower Show.

The design, which is themed around the links connecting the city centre to surrounding countryside, has a 12ft pair of lock gates at its centre.

Finally, after 7 years of trying, the Leeds entry has won a Gold Medal. So, it’s good to know that part of my council tax gets spent on turning water and wood into gold.

If only the council could turn water into gold more often, it might stave off some of the cuts which are now almost certain, in light of the Government’s cost cutting exercise. Let’s hope projects like these – investing in the environment around Leeds – have their real value fully realised over the coming months as Councils everywhere try to save a few billion pence each.

To read more, visit the BBC website