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Penelope Keith interviews Mike Fitzgerald at theWorld Custard Pie Championship – she was filming for the C4 series Village of the Year
Queen’s awards for Kent people
FOUR people from the Maidstone and Malling area have been hon- oured by the Queen. They are among 29 individuals from Kent named in the Her Majesty’s Birth- day Honours. Once again, the list recognises contributions for the community by those from all walks of life. This year’s list includes Gloria Hunni- ford, an anti-terror worker, a genetic engineer, and the organiser of the World Custard Pie Championships. Mike Fitzgerald has beenmadean
MBE. The former mayor of Maid- stone has devoted much of his time to work in the community, particu- larly with the homeless. A one-time chairman of Maid-
stone Homeless Care, he is a mem- ber of organisations such as the Royal British Legion. He has for many years organised
the World Custard Pie Champi- onships at Coxheath, which started out as a fund-raising venture for the village hall.
Mr Fitzgerald said he was stunned to receive a letter telling him about the award, which he re- ceives for services to the homeless and the community in Maidstone. Simon Watkin, from Maidstone,
has earned recognition for his role at the Office for Security and Counter- Terrorism within the Home Office, picking up an MBE for services to- border security. OBEs go to two recipients from
West Malling. They are Laura Faulkner, director of live marketing and e-commerce at the Department for International Trade, for her serv- ices toUKexports. Jacqueline MaryWestwood, a di-
rector at the UK Genetic Testing Network in London receives her OBEfor services to medical genetics and to the community in Kent. Gloria Hunniford’s OBE ac-
knowledges her services to cancer charities through Breast Screening Services and Cancer Support in Kent.
Stack site delayed
A COURT hearing into plans for a huge lorry park off the M20 to ease chaos created by Operation Stack has been delayed until the autumn. Opponents of the scheme – a
rural, 250-acre site at Stanford, near Folkestone – say a judicial review scheduled for June will now not be heard until October. This rules out any chance that the
site will be in use before the end of the year. The lorry park will eventually
house 3,600 vehicles which, in the case of industrial action at the ports or poor weather, would otherwise be held on the M20 from junction 8 at Leeds Castle all the way to the ChannelTunnel at Cheriton and the Port of Dover. The delaywas caused by the gen-
eral election and because the own- ers of the nearby Westenhanger
Castle are reportedly still seeking a compromise deal. In 2015, Operation Stackwasused
on a record 32 days, putting heavy burdens on roads around Maid- stone and in other parts of Kent. The new park will cost taxpayers £250m. The opposition groups contest the proposal on the grounds of envi- ronmental impact. Highways England reportedly
say there is no requirement for plan- ning permission as it has powers to acquire land for a holding area. Last year, Jim O’Sullivan, High-
ways England chief executive, said: “We will work with residents and local stakeholders to ensure the lorry area minimises its social and environmental impact, while meet- ing the wider need to address this issue for Kent and the UK.”
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clarkesfurnishers.co.uk Visit us at Sandling Road, Maidstone, ME14 2RF Maidstone July 2017 5
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