News


downsmail.co.uk Tories eye up Emily’sward


NINE months before the most hotly contested borough council seat comes up for grabs, the LiberalDemocrat incumbent Emily Fermor remains undecidedwhether or not to contest it. HerCoxheath andHuntonward


is Maidstone Borough Council’s most marginal of marginals – just one vote in 2016was thedifference. The Conservatives have eyed it


up as their number one target seat in May 2020, which may see the end of Lib Dems’ control of the council. Cllr Fermor cameunder fire after


theMay elections for failing to at- tend the full council meeting at which the Lib Dems needed her presence to retake control of the administration. Senior councillor Clive English


toldDownsMail at the time: “I un- derstand that Emily decided to take a holiday. But then I have not seenher for awhile –Emilyhasnot been playing a very active role re- cently.” Former Invicta Grammar pupil


and Oxford graduate Cllr Fermor, who has been forging a career in London, said: “I’ve notdecidedyet if I’ll be standing again, butwill let


Bus changes


SUMMER roadworks in rural areas around Maidstone has prompted a bus operator to over- haul its timetables. Nu-Venture has been changing


bus times through Yalding, Mar- den, the Farleighs and Hunton. And it has not ruled out having to makemore. A company spokesman said:


“The timetable changes are neces- sitated, in part, by the spate of road closures in the Farleighs and Yalding areas this summer. “There are four separate up-


coming closures on the B2010 alone over the next fiveweeks, all of which will require further di- versions and changes to bus times.”


party was beaten into third place by Labour. Odds are high that Kent educa-


tion expert Simon Webb may be pickedby hisparty onAugust 14 to stand in Coxheath&Hunton. TheHunton resident said: “If se-


lected I’d be looking to cut speed- ing in Dean Street, get some form of traffic calming on Linton Hill wheremotorbikes do 90mph and I believewe have to stop the current rate of house-building in the area. “What I amhearing overwhelm-


Lib DemCouncillor Emily Fermor and SimonWebb


you know when I make that deci- sion. “Since being proudly elected as


a Maidstone councillor I have at- tended more than 80 per cent of councilmeetings. “I amcommitted to the commu-


nity and continue to work hard to get the best for the residents of Coxheath andHunton. “It is essential to have a diverse


group of people sitting on the council, with a mix of age, gender andlife experience, andI take great pride in balancing full time work alongside representing our resi- dents." Cllr Fermor scraped into the


Coxheath andHunton seat in 2016 by one vote, but failed tomake ex- pected headway in the parliamen- tary election in 2017 when her


ingly fromthe residents I speak to is that the LibDemadministration is absolutely not sensitive to the needs of the current or future pop- ulations of this area. “The leaders seem to have little


or no idea about howto provide or plan for the roads and services needed to implement central gov- ernment targets.” MrWebb lost heavily to popular


Lib Dem Richard Webb at May’s election.


Teen held after dumper truck chase


POLICE arrested a teenager when he failed to stop in what officers believe was a stolen dumper truck. The 16-year-old was detained


after patrols ended a night chase by deploying a stinger. The incident happened at


around 2am on Wednesday, July 24, when police were called to Heath Road, Coxheath, to investi- gate reports of a “suspicious vehi- cle”. The dumper matched the de-


scription of a vehicle that had been taken earlier that night from a building site inMaidstone. Patrols ordered the driver to stop and, when he refused, deployed


the stinger kit across Hubbards Lane to deflate the dumper’s tyres. The teenager from Maidstone


was subsequently arrested and taken into custody on suspicion of aggravated vehicle taking.


Death crash driver gets five years


A DRIVER has been jailed for five years following a fatal colli- sion involving a 22-year-oldman nearMaidstone. At about 9.15pmon December


4, 2017, John Verlander (38) was driving a Citroen C4 on Linton Hill, towards Staplehurst, be- hind two other cars. As they ap- proached a bend, he overtook the two vehicles but lost control of his car as it returned to the


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correct side. It then veered onto the other side of the road, collid- ing with an oncoming Ford Fi- esta travelling towards Linton. The Fiesta, driven by a 22-year-


oldman fromthe Hastings area, came to a halt in a ditch at the side of the road. The driver was pronounced dead at the scene. Verlander, of St Leonards-on-


Sea, East Sussex was later charged and pleaded not guilty


Maidstone Weald August 2019


at Maidstone Crown Court to causing death by dangerous driving.Hewas convicted after a four-day trial and sentenced at the same court on July 18 to five years in prison. He was also disqualified from


driving for seven years and six months and will be required to take an extended driving test. Investigating officer, Police Constable Simon Masterson of


Kent Police’s Serious Collision Investigation Unit said: “The driver’s decision to overtake two cars showed appalling judge- ment and led to the needless death of a youngman. “This tragic incident should


send amessage tomotorists that theymust think twice and not at- tempt dangerousmanoeuvres as they can lead to serious injury or worse.”


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