downsmail.co.uk IT is nowalmost 18months sincewe


inMaidstone andMalling cast a very decisive vote in favour of Brexit. So did the rest of Kent. Howdo you viewthings now? It isworth reminding ourselves of the


How do you see Brexit now? MailMarks


DENNISFOWLE President dfowle2011@aol.com


voting figures. InMaidstone itwas 52,365 (58.8%) for Brexit and 36,762 to remain. In Tonbridge andMalling the votingwas 41,229 for leave and 32,792 to remain. Across the rest of Kent, every area bar TunbridgeWells voted to leave –Ashford, Shepway, Sevenoaks Canterbury, Dartford, Dover, Swale, Gravesham, Thanet andMedway. The total Kent vote to leavewas 576,607, just about 60%. There can be no argumentwhat Kent demands. Recent surveys showthe national


majority for Brexit is hardening and, in addition,manywho voted remain now want to see the job done, sowemove on. Stated EU ambitions in the lastweeks for more federalismand greater controls over nationmembers are not going downwell on this side of the English Channel. I did not forecast a Brexit vote in


Maidstone until the last fewdays before the referendum. But as I took strawpolls among groups of friends and atmeetings I sawa powerful trend emerging. On a couple of occasions all 20 or so declared for Brexit.When I told some senior politicians they did not believeme! So howdo those same Brexiteers in


Kent feel now? I have spoken tomany – and they aremainly frustrated, becoming increasingly angry andwith rebellious thoughts. They are evenmore determined wemust quit an expensive and expansive European political clubwe did not vote to join and they see increasingly threatening ourway of life and future prosperity. The serious impacts of immigration and major overcrowding in our area,


We’re grinding to a halt


IAMwriting tomake a plea on behalf of the residents of Boxley Parish to request that the local authorities immediately start a serious dialogue aimed at bringing inmajor improvements to the road infrastructure. Many le�ers have been published over a


long period of time about the current very poor road infrastructure in the south of the Borough. Iwould like to bring to the authority’s


a�ention thatwe,who happen to live in the north of the borough, experience virtually every day, huge traffic problems that regularly bring thewhole area around Junction 3 of theM2 to a complete standstill. KCC have openly admi�ed that this


junction is nowat a critical level butwe await any signs of plans or proposals to do anything about the problem. The problemwill only getworse once


approved housing development just over the border inMedway is built. This traffic will inevitably a�empt to join the already existing rat run through rural roads leading down to Boxley village and on to Penenden Heath.


42 Malling November 2017


especially somuch extra housing, congested roads and on our hard-pressed and under-funded local services, aremore deeply ingrained than ever. The demand is for sovereignty – and nomore European Court of Justice. Most expected to be free of the EU after


two years of giving notice. The potential extra two-year transitional period does not go down at allwell – butmost appreciate this is a complex issue to help safeguard both the UK and our friends in other European countries and are listening to the case nowbeing projected by the British government. Butmost believe the EU is not really


negotiating – just trying to prevaricate to force us into submission to remain. They see a fearful EU set on a course of punishing, bullying and extorting as muchmoney as possible, noma�er the damage both to their own remaining national economies and ours. No one has forgo�en TheresaMay’s


statement – “No deal is be�er than a bad deal” – and is expecting her to change her approach and start soon playing this prolonged and unedifying game on our terms. It is our decision andwemust be the piper playing this tune. There is strong suspicion about the two-


year transitional period and the desire of some remainers in government to extend it. The PrimeMinister says it is set to a firmdeadline (2021).Many fear others will see it as a general election issue in 2022. If the Conservatives agree that route, it


I agree thatwe do desperately need new


dwellings to assist young couples to buy their first home but no authority seems prepared to bite the bullet and come out with some firmproposals to improve the road infrastructure. Could Local andNational authorities


please listen to the voice of the public and address this increasingly terrible problem before the South East grinds to a halt? It would appear that Localismmeans very li�le to politicianswhomake these decisions that affect people’s quality of life. Bob Hinder, Chairman, Boxley Parish Council


The circle of congestion I READwith interest the article regarding the newhousing development atMaidstone TV Studios and agreewholeheartedly that this developmentwill undoubtedly cause additionalmisery for local residents. Unsupported newhousing


developments, particularly in terms of road infrastructure, have been the normnowin Maidstone for several years and I have watched in dismay and sadness as our


close to the democratic ground. They must be receiving the same strong messages increasingly coming tome.





Stage fright DOES anyone sharemy long-term


frustrations trying tomake online theatre bookingswith theAssembly Hall, TunbridgeWells? Imade a strong protestmore than a


year ago that the sitewas very user unfriendly. I have nowrun in to problems again andwhen I switched to the phone, the staff did admit to other complaints and a “clunky” site. By comparison, bookings at


Maidstone’sHazli� seemfast, friendly and efficient.





Garden of England ITmay not have been a hot, sunny


summer but I think in Kent themixture of warmth and rain hasmade our gardens and countryside about themost beautiful and productive I can remember. It started in early springwith a prolific


daffodil season andwent on fromthere. Our vegetables and soft fruits cropped


very heavily, followed bymassive plum and apple harvests. Shrubs and others plants took off and


the challengewas to cut themback to ensure all had their allo�ed space. Andwith no long hot and dry spells,


gardens retained their green freshness duringAugust and September. Therewas no rest for lawnmowers! I have always loved Kent. This year it


has really been amagnificent “Garden of England”.


county town has been slowly thro�led by reckless developers having li�le or no consideration for the needs orwishes of its residents. For too long these builders have been


allowed to construct housing developments withoutmaking the necessary financial investment in essential infrastructure - despite the patently obvious need. The circle of congestion and a�endant


traffic gridlock in and aroundMaidstone is nowalmost complete; the development at theMaidstone Studioswill finish the job. Well done CountyHall and thank you – I don’t think! Martin R JonesMBE JP, Lt Col (Retd), Whatman Close,Maidstone


Not the Brexit Iwanted


ASA Leave supporter, I amhaving some misgivings about theway things are going in relation to leaving the EU. It seems the reported extra £350million a


week for theNHS has turned out to be nonsense; David Davis says that immigrationmight have to actually go up; soonwewon’t be able to buy fruit and


Malling November 2017 43


downsmail.co.uk


could be a very long time before they see power again – andmanywillwelcome an energetic re-emergence of the eloquent Nigel Farage and Ukip. I trust politicians have their ears very


vegetables because there is no one to pick them;we shall be trying tomake trade dealswith USA,who, judging by the Bombardier case, are not going to be easy people to dealwith andwhowillwant us to buy chlorinated chickens, genetically modified crops andmeat full of antibiotics. Also, I understandwe shall be excluded


fromsome important science research projects andwon’t be able share important intelligence on terroristswith the rest of Europe. Some reassurance, please. Jeremy Staker, via email


Signs not good for future DENNIS Fowle reaffirms his Panglossian belief that Britain’s impending departure fromthe European Unionwill turn out for the best. However, earlier in his piece he speaks of


the “worrying shortages” in theNHS (“Bravo Brexit…Big GP Changes”). These shortagesmaywell growworse should doctors and nurses in Europe or elsewhere in theworld for thatma�er, perceive this country as unwelcoming towards strangers, howeverwell-qualified. A deepening recruitment crisis is


looming for theNHS and the young,who mainly voted to stay in the EU,will not readily forgive, still less thank those ofMr Fowle’s persuasion for landing themin this self-inflictedmess. K G Banks,Maidstone


Is EU arroganceworth it?


AFTER centuries of self-rule, having once run a quarter of theworld, to suggestwe are unable to stand alone,make our own laws, etc., is laughable. Indeed, the suggestion by the EU that


their nationals need some formof protection fromus, is deeply offensive and it's about time somebody said so! There may be some drawbacks fromleaving the EU, but it depends howmuch of their greed, arrogance and corruption it really is worth pu�ing upwith, forminimal returns. All themore reason for the greater


unificationwanted byMr Juncker et al, so they can proceed to one government. People think London is remote, imagine us totally ruled fromBrussels. The EU proceedswith negotiations as if


their ruleswere sent down on tablets of stone, as if they occupy themoral high


Are footpaths nowat risk?


IWAS out walking through the King’sWood at Broomfield the other day, just after reading that the wooded land around Leeds Castle is now up for sale. I sincerely hope that we


walkers won’t suddenly find the pathways that we have used for years are suddenly in private hands and are no longer available to us. N Johnston, via email


ground, as if they arewithout fault or blemish. Aswe see fromthe carefully hushed up


youth unemployment figures of 50%in somemember states, the riots, disturbances fromthe forcedmass immigration, the one size Euro that doesn't fit all, the EU leaders are intransigent, undemocratic, unwilling to listen and determined to build their one government order noma�er howmany people suffer, howmuch it costs and whether theirmembers lose all identity. Theremay be some ready to sell their


birthright for 'amess of potage', but having bothered to look intowhat the EU is really all about, I realisemy forefatherswere right to fight for our independence. Phil Granger,W.Malling


Cannabis for pain relief


HOME Office figures suggest that nearly threemillion people in the UK are using cannabis. Possession and use of this substance for


whatever reason is a criminal offence. However, a lesser known estimate is that about one third of these, nearly amillion people, feel compelled to use cannabis for a primarilymedical reason. Thatwould suggest that in and around


theMaidstone area, there are perhaps around 1,500medical users of cannabis. A recent reviewof evidence fromacross


theworld confirms that it can helpwith chronic pain and a range of conditions includingMS, Crohn’s disease, epilepsy, Toure�e’s and some aspects of Parkinson’s. Yet the UK Government chooses to ignore the benefits ofmedical cannabis, asserting


that it has “nomedical benefit”. Clearly the governments of Germany, Spain,Australia, theNetherlands, Italy and over 25 US states see things differently, as they all do now allowaccess tomedical cannabis. Our assertion is that peoplewho take


cannabis formedical reasons should be treated as patients, not criminals. Sign the national petition atwww.endourpain.org Peter Carroll, director, endourpain.org Editor’s note: Peter Carroll is former Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate in Maidstone & theWeald


‘Patriots’ spewing hatred


IHAVE not always agreedwithHelen GrantMP, but I endorse her comments made on theMosque and Britain First. Iwas confronted by one of these people


in their recent demonstration,when they told blatant lies about the already approved Mosque planning application. When I told themtherewas no point


objecting as the application had already been approved, I received a torrent of abuse and a suggestion that Iwantedmy female relatives to be treated inways too unsavoury tomention in a public forum. I amslightly surprised that your coverage


describedMs Grant’s comments as extraordinary – I think they reflect the anger any decent personwould feel at Nazis trying to pretend they are British patriots, and trying to use the flimsy excuse of objecting to an already determined planning application to peddle vicious falsehoods. Cllr Clive English,Maidstone Borough Council


Comment


Comment


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23