downsmail.co.uk
It could have been far worse SimonSays
ONE of the joys of the lockdown was the peace and quiet; no hum from the M20, the silence on the roads. It seemed to last quite a while.
Around Leeds, Langley, Kingswood, Sutton Valence and Leeds Castle’s grounds, there were folk everywhere out exercising - cycling or walking their dogs or children or both. They became nodding acquaintances as daily trails crossed, expertly swerving one another on woodland paths. It became striking how civilised the country had become; how friendly, how courteous. Leeds Castle bosses allowed locals to
wander in places they perhaps might not have otherwise strayed. It is sad they have to find 62 redundancies as a result of the slump in revenue. But our “loveliest” jewel will sparkle once more. Far from the tiny minority of “covidiots” (generally sought out by the atrocious, catastrophising BBC news) who flouted restrictions on beaches, city streets and parks, most did their duty, kept a sensible distance on the infrequent occasions they went out and did not put members of the wider public at risk. There were those who looked in on older friends to check if all was well, delivered shopping, essentials, mowed a lawn, clipped a hedge and the like. Most recognised the need to do our bit for a common purpose and do as we were told by a Government on a war- like footing. This was serious. The frontline staff in the NHS, the 999 services and other key working occupations did heroic work, often with stoic realism that this pandemic, at some stage, could get really, really bad. Without forgetting the 45,000 who tragically died, without a family member to comfort them in their last moments or the grieving themselves, the government never had to call into
BBC bias disappointing
DURING the last war, particularly 1942 when matters could not have been worse, we were losing everywhere and Europe was being conquered by Germany, we were still basically told the truth. I was always proud of the BBC until fairly recently. I was further disillusioned by their coverage of Brexit. After that saga, Andrew Marr wondered how we got it so wrong when it seemed that the answer to that was obvious to any who watched or listened to Question Time and Any Questions? Once the questions were not seen by the panellists, but it was very obvious both were carefully selected during that period and are now.
After Boris Johnson’s great victory, not one person in the audience supported
SIMON FINLAY Editor
simon.finlay@
downsmail.co.uk Twitter @Simonfinlay6500
action the Nightingale Hospitals. So, from that point of view, it never got “really, really bad” and thank goodness for that.
The public inquiry, which will take
years to report back, will probably uncover horror stories about the care home sector, shortages of PPE and testing kits – and possibly others besides. It may also conclude there are positives, too, but that is generally not the purpose of public inquiries. Whether personal or ministerial blame will be apportioned remains to be seen. The Government, the Prime Minister and his advisers will almost certainly have made mistakes. But every government in the world will have got it wrong in some way.
By then, most people will barely remember this strange hiatus in the spring and summer of 2020. But like 9/11, the Coronavirus will probably leave a legacy in its wake which lasts a generation.
In the short term, many Kentish folk will also remember this as a time of uncertainty and of worry. About jobs, about money, about education and about loved ones.
Who cannot feel for the parents of children who crawled the walls for months when they should have been in education? Who would not sense the injustice of our wonderful young people who missed out on proving their academic worth in the exam halls and unable to join friends on results day? (That rite of passage may have been denied them, but they’ve certainly
him the following week.
Some opinionated presenters on BBC flagship news programmes ask biased, leading questions to those they favour, while giving a hard time to those with conflicting views to their own. It has seemed to me and others that the Coronavirus has never been the main agenda during these last months – just the same old diatribe over and over again.
One would imagine that the people or the editors on these main channels would at least be more subtle and not disclose their obvious bias so prominently. Alan Wallace, via email
Planning is a shambles
IF THE cross-party efforts to limit the degree to which Maidstone borough
made their mark in history.) Let us hope the schools are up, running and fully functional by September.
Let’s hope, too, that the end of the furlough scheme means a return to work and not a walk to the job centre. There are many thousands of people in Kent who will be thankful for the money handed out by this Government which kept their companies afloat and their jobs open.
They will also know there is a price to pay for the handout. There will be a surge in unemployment, but whether it reaches the predicted four million is yet to be seen.
It’s good to be back AFTER four months away, the Downs Mail is back … and it’s good to be back. This is the second of our fortnightly editions in the new delivery/pick-up publishing model.
It has taken a lot of work and behind- the-scenes planning to get to this stage. And as a team, we have had to adapt to the changed world of work we re- entered.
But it has also been an exciting relaunch and it has been heartening how many of our faithful family of readers have adapted to our new way of doing things.
As a small business located in the heart of Maidstone, it has been gratifying to know that our commercial partners and advertisers have stayed loyal to us, too. They know we’re one of them. At the risk of sounding like one of the pompous, self-appointed spokesmen for “our industry” who expound theories about the regional news media business but offer no solutions, there is a simple lesson in all of this. If you support us, we’ll support you.
should be carpeted with houses have resulted in a meeting leading to a sensible reduction in central Government requirements, then this is to be welcomed.
The great issue we have is whether Maidstone Borough Council actually wants a reduction, now that it is a “master developer” at Lenham and is hoovering up other assets such as Lockmeadow and Park Wood for commercial return.
The other big problem is that there is no real discussion of any note with Kent County Council. There is talk of relations, post-High Court judicial review, being better. That may be the case, but there is no evidence of anything being built. They can’t seem to agree on anything. Look at the A274.
I recently spent a few days in a county 45
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 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48
