A FEW decades in this business tends to breed a certain amount of cynicism towards people in positions of power. And when you write about controversial subjects, it is almost inevitable that you upset a few people.

So it was not all that surprising that, just over a decade ago, I upset Coun Robert Heseltine, then one of the most influential people in Craven.

He was then chairman of the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority, a county and district councillor, and a man whose advice was sought on rural matters by people in national government.

At the time, however, national parks were extremely unpopular with many of the residents within their boundaries for, so it was alleged, putting the interests of visitors above those of locals.

I wrote this - and Robert was furious. In an angry phone call, he accused me of "stitching him up" and, although things got better over the years, there remained a certain coolness.

Then, one day three years ago, when he had been dragged before the courts for allegedly fiddling his national park expenses, I saw him walking towards me on the opposite side Court Lane in Skipton.

It was a time when many of his old so-called friends had dropped him like a hot potato. Some of his former political allies had turned their backs on him. But I couldn't let him pass unacknowledged.

I crossed the street, shook his hand, and thought he was about to burst into tears.

"What has really got to me is the court sentencing me to 240 hours of community service," he said. "What do they think I have been doing quite voluntarily these past 20 years and more?"

Well, Robert Heseltine is back - controversially as ever - after three years in the wilderness. His return to Craven District Council for the Skipton South ward in last month's elections has caused uproar in some quarters and pleasure in others, as witnessed by a series of outspoken letters on our correspondence pages.

And despite the old cynic in me, I am one of those who welcomes his return for pragmatic, journalistic reasons: Robert Heseltine can always be relied upon to say it as it is.

To him, a spade is a bleeping shovel. And in an era when nobody cares about local government, we need people like him to keep the council taxpayers awake.

The Heseltine story goes back a very long way indeed. His mother's side of the family were farming in Upper Wharfedale in the 14th century. The Heseltines came later, as raiders from the Scottish borders in the 18th century - which might have some bearing on the buccaneering side to Robert's character.

He was born on the floor of the family farm in Bolton Abbey on a day when the Craven Fault slipped, bringing a mini earthquake which caused the farm's drystone walls to collapse. His mother swore he would be trouble from there on in.

Both his grandfathers had served on the old Skipton Rural District Council and local politics were in the family blood. At the age of seven, young Robert organised his first community project - farm visits for the townie pupils at Christ Church Primary School, Skipton - so he can legitimately claim to have been serving local people for more than 50 years!

He went to Ermysted's, where he excelled at cross-country running, but at 16 went back to the family's farming business, which now included land in Bishopdale beyond Buckden Pike.

He was elected to Craven District Council as an independent in 1973 and soon went on to bigger things: he was national park chairman for eight years and at one time he, his wife Pam and his daughter Rebecca all served on CDC.

Despite all this, Robert maintains "I am not a politician" and he could be right.

Had he been more politic, he might not have made a lot of enemies, a fault which he admits to but also defends: "To get things done, you have to open your mouth on matters some people would prefer to remain unsaid. You have to push the boundaries, which upsets some people. If that makes enemies, it is a price I was willing to pay to make things happen."

It was to be his undoing. Although he never charged a penny in expenses to Craven district in 24 years, his expenses claims records for the national park were, he admits, "sloppy".

People he had offended began to do the sums - and he ended up in crown court for allegedly fiddling some £2,500. He pleaded guilty at the very last minute because, he explained, "the stress of it all was tearing my family apart and to plead guilty was the only way to get it done and dusted".

Public disgrace was not the end of it. He suffered financial difficulties and his wife, Pam, had divorced him - "My fault - I always put work before the family."

His community service consisted of keeping the graveyard of Settle Parish Church tidy for 240 hours - and he has been doing it for three years and will continue to do it in future, along with dry-stone walling. He also helps people who come for advice.

"Even though I had resigned my council seats, people still kept coming to me with problems and I did the best to help. Then I thought if I'm still doing a councillor's work, I might as well become a councillor again. So here I am."

Robert Heseltine is three years older, a great deal greyer, and I suspect vastly wiser than before his spectacular fall from grace. Although he still vehemently denies deliberate fraud, he clearly wants a chance to re-establish himself in the public eye. Surely, given his years of public service, he deserves that chance?