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study separately from non-S106 money. If that is not the case and what I am


hearing is wrong, MBC should have no difficulty in denying such an offer. MBC says it seeks clarity. I think it is


because they want the clarity that the highway mitigation provisions contained in the Local Plan supersedes the discretionary powers of the statutory highway authority. It has everything to do with MBC trying to supersede the statutory authority of KCC as the highways body. If residents were to look at the grounds


that MBC is seeking to argue in the High Court, they will see that MBC acknowledges that land adjoining the A274 is fixed as the main area for urban growth and there were to be two highway mitigation works to address the impact of development. Part of this requires the widening of


Su�on Road at its junction with Willington Street, a scheme rejected by the Joint Transportation Board, consisting of 50% KCC and 50% MBC membership. Notwithstanding this rejection, MBC


presses ahead trying to get the High Court to effectively approve what elected councillors have already rejected. But not only that, the papers state that


the claimant (MBC) requires “the additional inbound carriageway to have some bus prioritisation measures comprising dedicated bus use of the new carriageway between appropriate hours (7.30am and 9.30am) with the new carriageway then being made available for other traffic at all other times”. Councillors at the JTB have been


assured that bus prioritisation was not a bus lane. I respect Cllr Wilson and believe that she and many of her colleagues are well-meaning, but when anyone seeks to tell the truth, maybe it should be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Gary Cooke, Kent County Councillor for Maidstone South East


Brexit opinion ‘one-sided’


I WILL keep this short. Why have you made a platform for Dennis Fowle’s one-


sided, often ill-informed, rhetoric regards Brexit? He writes: “I think the majority of voters


see this as a time for national pride.” Polls now favour a large majority in


favour of remaining. Less national pride, more international joke. I would like you to put a stop to his


remarks, or at least print the other side of the story. Paul Coage, via email


Join fight for our wildlife


WILDLIFE in Kent is in trouble – too many species are in decline and at risk of extinction. Habitats are being lost, damaged and fragmented at a terrifying rate, and there isn’t enough space or resources for wildlife to survive. The government has commi�ed to


creating a new Environment Act this year and for the first time in the last 20 years, this is an opportunity to create a wilder nation for future generations. That’s why I’m standing alongside Kent


Wildlife Trust in calling on our local MPs to back a strong Environment Act. Our new Environment Act needs to


ensure that politicians are answerable to meaningful targets for nature’s recovery. It needs to set in place new legal requirements to create a “Nature Recovery Network” that will allow wildlife to move more freely around our landscape. And we need our new law to put in place a strong, independent watchdog that can challenge decisions that are damaging to nature. I encourage all of us to join Kent


Wildlife Trust’s campaign at kentwildlifetrust.org.uk/EnvironmentAct. Ed Charles, Muir Road, Maidstone


Act to save Park and Ride


THE idea of local buses taking on the Park and Ride has been tried. By the time the 71 or 72 arrived at the Allington Park and Ride from the Larkfield direction, all the downstairs seats were taken and older people waiting could not board as they could not manage the stairs. Using the local buses in the afternoon is


difficult when the schools finish. In Leicester, the charge for the Park and


Ride is £3. Those with a bus pass only pay £1 to park, the ride is free. Perhaps something along those lines could be tried to save such a valuable service. The traffic in Maidstone is outrageous, MBC needs to start solving the problem and encourage us to visit and shop before it is too late. Ann Jackson, Allington


Come clean on health cuts


I read with absolute dismay the small article regarding a possible cut to the provision of the vasectomy service in the West Kent CCG area. Over the years, since the CCGs took


over their functions, there have been many stories, claims and rumours as to the cuts and limitations placed on health services in West Kent. Can the group come clean and clarify


exactly which services it has closed since the demise of the Primary Care Trusts and give details of the extent where there have been limitations of these services? No spin please, just fact.


Tony Monk, Westerhill Road, Coxheath


Plagued by stink bugs YOUR article on Stink Bugs (Downs Mail February 2019) is a most interesting subject for me because I first noticed them on my apartment walls as far back as 2014. One was caught and I visited the


museum in Maidstone for help to identify it. I was told that there was nothing available to help with its presence. So, over the years, it is very unpleasant


living where one cannot have the windows open. We are surrounded by old conifer trees,


so I am wondering what a�racts the bugs. The outside of our apartment is, in parts, painted white and they seem to only plague us. Maybe this is the problem. It would be very interesting if an expert


could give some advice as to elimination. Doreen Giovanelli, St Luke’s Avenue, Maidstone


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