Last October Maidstone's hapless MPs Helen Grant and Helen Whately voted down an amendment to the Environment Bill that would have stopped the dumping of sewage into rivers and coastal waters. Many of the Parliamentary supporters of continued sewage dumping by the water companies cited cost as their justification for putting profit before the health of our environment.
It will not be news to anyone that Maidstone Borough is suffering major problems in many areas of the Borough with failing water supply infrastructure, inadequate sewage disposal, collapsing drains and sewers, and grossly polluted watercourses. Whilst the Liberal Democrats do not control Maidstone Council, we are using every lever we have at our disposal to address this issue, including supporting a water-cycle policy motion to the Full council meeting of 20th July and successfully proposing a more technical motion at Planning Committee on 21st July.
We are pleased to announce that Cllr Clive English has been elected to chair the Council's new Overview and Scrutiny Committee.
KCC is planning a temporary closure of Cranborne Avenue in March ahead of a proposal to demolish the Wheatsheaf pub, signalise Plains Avenue at Loose Road and reconfigure the Wheatsheaf junction. KCC’s original plan was to start work to deliver the junction changes this spring.
South Ward councillors Brian Clark, Derek Mortimer and Paul Wilby are working with numerous groups helping to collect humanitarian items for residents in Ukraine. On Saturday Cllrs Clark and Mortimer, collected the first van full of donations from the Loose YMCA and later Cllr Clark collected two further van loads from Staplehurst Parish Council. The boxes collected include urgently needed items such as medical supplies, canned food, hygiene products, baby food, nappies, batteries, candles, toothpaste.
At February’s Strategic Planning Committee Maidstone Lib Dems call for a fairer approach to Town Centre parking in light of Park and Ride Services ceasing on 19th Feb, while cancelling the price increase planned for town centre parking permits.
