downsmail.co.uk Election candidates announced


CANDIDATES are emerging as parties begin to choose who will stand against ConservativeMP Helen Grant for the Maidstone andWeald seat in the General Election of May 2015.


Eddie Powellwas selected by UKIP members at a hustings event in East Farleigh, attended by about 70 mem- bers. He beat rival candidates Colin Nicholson and Roy Philpott. Mr Powell, one of four UKIP bor-


ough councillors elected to Maidstone Council inMay, promises to campaign against Maidstone Council’s “exces- sive” housing targets and promote the need for more grammar schools and extra funding for the NHS. He says withdrawing from the EU


would save the country £53m a day, which could be used to plug the gap in NHS funding. Former GP Dr Paul Hobday will be standing for the National Health Ac- tion Party, which was launched in 2012 by healthworkers and those dis- illusioned by NHS reforms. Dr Hobday, who retired last year


after 30 years as a GP in Sutton Va- lence, is calling for a halt to NHS pri- vatisation, an end to the housing crisis and for parliamentary reform. He told the Downs Mail: “Tragi-


cally, we have seen deaths from clostridium difficile when past man-


UKIP’s Eddie Powell, NHAP’s Dr Paul Hobday and Labour’s Allen Simpson


agement tried to run down Maidstone Hospital to pay for the new hospital at TunbridgeWells. “We lost the fight for ourmaternity


unit despite 95% ofGPs (and the pub- lic) being opposed to its closure—this is totally inconsistent with the Gov- ernment lies of giving GPs and pa- tients power. “There are many more examples


and this will be the future unless this damaging and dangerous policy is changed.” The party’s co-leader Dr Clive


Older people are part of the 320,000


British people who le the UK last year, usually for sunnier climes and not to take someone else’s job. Barbara Long also claims that four fihs


of the people moving into Maidstone come from within the UK. She makes this claim in the knowledge that it would be difficult for immigrants to be granted a mortgage on a Maidstone property while living abroad and, therefore, they have to rent in the UK before applying to create a good credit history. These people are then classified by the Government as coming from within the UK. Why does she feel the need to defend “non-UK residents” (immigrants to you and me) if they are not the cause of the housing shortage? These comments and her aempt to smear Dennis Fowle as a racist are a sign of the weakness of her argument (“If you disagree with me you are a racist”). The EU immigration policy that Barbara


Long supports is itself racist, since it only allows the free movement of people from the predominantly-white European countries while denying automatic access to Asian and African people. We should only accept people who have


skills that this crowded country needs, regardless of their ethnicity. MikeWardle, by email


Thoughts on immigration


Dear Sir – I am writing with regard to Barbara Long's leer in the September issue. It is rare to find such a kind and thoughtful opinion on immigration. Your responsewas in line with what is more frequently said. I ama Spanish citizen who moved to


Peedell, who is running against Prime Minister David Cameron in Witney, said: “Paul is a very serious candidate, with strong local support, who has a real chance of causing an upset and ousting Tory MPHelen Grant.” Labour announced earlier this year


that a former Maidstone Grammar School pupil will be its candidate. Allen Simpson (31) is originally from East Malling, but currently lives in Dulwich, south London andworks for Barclays Bank. If elected he plans to move back to Maidstone, where both


England in 2006 to live with my English partner. I would like to ask that any British person who takes part in a debate on immigration to consider the following points: 1. Imagine yourself in a foreign country, with customs you do not know and a language that it is not your own, surrounded by people who misinterpret you, even consider you inferior, away from the people you love. It is not easy. Whatever an immigrant’s reason, it is a good reason for that person. Because it is NOT easy. 2. I hear British people speak with pride about Victorian times. Less frequently they realise that at that time, the Britishwere emigrating to other countries, and the citizens from those countries are now coming to Britain.A strong part of Britain's immigration is linked to the history of the Empire. I understand that another part of Britain's immigration is linked to the EU, and I wish British citizens could be given the opportunity to vote on their membership. 3. UK is not only a country of immigrants, it is also a country of emigrants. Spain receives quite a few of them along its Mediterranean coast, with a detrimental effect on the local population. Developers know that the British can afford more expensive houses, so prices go up and Spanish people can no longer afford to buy homes in areas favoured by British citizens. There is also great pressure onwater resources. But when our environment is destroyed, British citizens just have to find another sunny country. 4. I never understood people who complain about immigrants taking local jobs and then buy foreign products. Anybody whowants to favour local jobs


of his parents live. He supports Maidstone Council’s emerging local plan, which calls for 18,600 new homes in the borough be- tween 2011 and 2031. Stuart Jeffery, the leader of Maid-


stone Greens,sayshewillnot be standing for the seat in Maidstone, but will assist in finding a candidate. Mr Jeffery represented the party against Helen Grant in 2010, coming fourth with 655 votes. He will stand for the Canterbury and Whitstable seat next May. In themeantime, he will continue to


work with MaidstoneGreens as secre- tary. He added: “We will have a candi-


date in place by the middle of October following an internal election. There are at least two excellent candidates.” Former journalist Jasper Gerard has


long since declared that he will stand for the Lib Dems in the forthcoming election. Among his pre-election promises is


a determination to fight for a reduc- tion in the number of houses being proposed for the constituency.


should start by buying local products - I do. Ana Fernandez, by email


Volunteers help villages


Dear Sir – I amvery pleased that the residents of Downswood and Otham can look forward to longevity (Downs Mail, August). Both parish councils have proactive councillors who care about residents and the environment in which we live. Our open and green areas that givemy ward its character are currently under threat from large-scale proposals from developers and we are all keen to see these developments kept to a minimum. Both Downswood and Otham are clean


and tidy places to live, which has been recognised by residents when driving into other parts of Maidstone that are not as free from lier. There is nothing worse than walking


along pathways and seeing discarded plastic boles, drink cans and packaging from fast food outlets dumped by inconsiderate and ignorant people who leave it for somebody else to clear up. Our community volunteers care about


where we live and go out early in the morning to clear up lier thrown out of passing cars. This is what adds to the “feel-good


factor” in our parishes. Perhaps other parishes should follow


our example and encourage residents to take a more proactive role in looking aer their own communities. Cllr Gordon Newton, Independent member for Downswood and Otham


Maidstone East October 2014 35


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