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electricity at the Allington incinerator. The two bags of clothing could be put into my black bin for collection in two weeks’ time.
When I asked why the binman didn’t do this, the only response was that the truck that was equipped to take the bags was not available, and that I could put them into the black bin myself or take them to the tip.
After all the expense that the council has spent on promoting a recycling scheme, this seems to be a total lack of ethical standards. I doubt that the public is aware of what TMBC is taking to the incinerator and would be horried if it was made known. Raymond Reeves, via email
Give officers a break
THERE are a great many nay-sayers in your otherwise ne publication, especially when it comes to the leadership and officers of Maidstone Borough Council.
It is easy to stand on the sidelines and hurl bottles, but it’s a lot harder to actually do what these people, elected and unelected, have to do day in, day out. I believe your newspaper when it points out that there are many, many decisions made that no one ever gets to hear about, but just because it is being highlighted does not make them wrong or misguided. It just means that people are seeing things for the rst time. If MBC officers had to put every tiny detail to some squabbling sub-committee, I doubt anything would ever get done. Sometimes you have to let people get on and make common-sense decisions and trust their judgement. N Henderson, via email
Good news for riverside
IT WAS so heartening to read that Maidstone Borough Council is now serious about policy to re-site retail warehouses from our town centre riverside and open up this area, hopefully with attractive residential use. They are important retailers for the town, but they should never have been located in this high-prole area. So many Maidstone residents have been saying this. Years ago, I advocated a new Maidstone riverside theatre. The huge capital and running costs make this very unlikely. Sadly, I now accept the hard nancial facts.
Jenny Court, Maidstone
No bonre complaints I AM pleased that one of your readers has written in support of garden bonres. I need to have one every few months to burn garden rubbish too complex for a council garden bin.
I aim to light it late on a day when the 46
weather is appropriate, and inform close neighbours beforehand. I have not had a complaint in 26 years. William Blythe, Maidstone
Burning waste a health risk
YOUR reader Norman Best should read the advice on the Maidstone Borough Council website about bonres during Covid-19 and take it. And if he doesn’t, perhaps his neighbours should read it – and act on it. Bonres are a health and
environmental risk now and at any time. The tip or recycling centre is open and if there is too much “gardening detritus” for Mr Best to get in his garden bin then I suggest he either chops it up – it’s amazing how much a bin will take – pays for a second bin or takes it to the tip, rather than inict his smoke and fumes on those living around him.
As should others living in Maidstone and the surrounding villages. Lynn Rylands, via email
Badgers food for thought
RE THE badger debate. I seem to remember the subject of cooking badgers came up on the TV show, Two Fat Ladies, some years ago.
One of them opined they make excellent eating. Something to bear in mind when navigating the back roads of an evening, perhaps. M Gibson, via email
Birds’ peace short-lived
UNTIL I read your paper the other day, I had not noticed what a racket the tawny owls seem to be making this year. Your correspondent is absolutely right, there appears to be a lot of screeching to and fro in the evenings.
I wonder if the apparent increase in the number of cuckoos this year and the cacophony of the owl population has anything to do with the lockdown. Did the peace and quiet and lack of pollution have anything to do with it? Who knows? But if it was linked, there
are valuable lessons here. First, our local wildlife prefers a stressless life in order to thrive. Secondly, didn’t they respond quickly to the change in conditions? But now, what is depressing is this
Government’s relentless quest for more housing and a council that can’t seem to agree to build any useful infrastructure to deal with the thousands and thousands of extra and unwanted new houses. A Wallace, via email
Memory walks appeal
EVERY autumn, Alzheimer’s Society Memory Walk events across the UK see thousands of people come together to raise money to help defeat dementia. Sadly this year, Coronavirus meant we
had to cancel the large-scale events we all know and love. Instead, we asked people to step out and support us by doing their own personal walks, from July to October, in line with government guidelines. We have been overwhelmed by the enthusiasm and generosity of 2,498 supporters across the South East who signed up and helped raise over £1.2 million for Alzheimer’s Society. We want to say a big thank you to
everyone who took part in Memory Walk this year and made a difference to people affected by dementia.
The pandemic has hit people with dementia the hardest, with many of the 850,000 people living with the condition experiencing crippling loneliness and confusion by losing their much-needed routines.
Thousands of carers are facing care home visitor bans or are struggling to get a break.
Our services have been used more than 2 million times since lockdown began, showing people need us more than ever. But we’re facing a signicant loss of fundraising income because of Coronavirus. As Memory Walk season ends, please consider donating to our Coronavirus Appeal or join one of our next fundraising events, like Elf Day on Friday, December 4, or any date that suits you. Sign up for a free fundraising pack at
alzheimers.org.uk/ElfDay. Linda O'Sullivan, Alzheimer's Society, head of region for South East England
Who needs these houses?
MUCH of your last issue was devoted to the destruction of the Kent countryside by covering it with concrete and housing. Has anyone stopped to ask who it is who needs these proposed houses and where they are living at the moment? The already over-congested South East of England needs more housing developments like a hole in the head. Our current, inept, soundbite Prime Minister keeps on banging on about “we will build our way out of our current problems” with little evidence to support why that is desirable or, even, necessary. There also appear to have been some suggestions in the press that those who approve building developments may not be exactly impartial in making those decisions, although, I think, that opinion would surprise nobody. If there is a real will to develop a “northern powerhouse”, then why continue to encourage people to live in the South East, which is already in danger of sinking into the sea? Like most problems we face, the root cause seems to be down to too many people rather than not enough resources, and we cannot build our way out of that problem without destroying the planet. David Hackett, Maidstone
Comment
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