News
Pear champs LOOSE farmer Brian Piper and his
daughter Rachel Sands are cham- pion Kent cherry growers and now they are pear champions too. They won all three pear classes (Conference, Comice and Con- corde) at the National Fruit Show at Marden Cricket Ground. In the summer they won the commercial class for their Kordia cherries at the National Soft Fruit Show.
Third Act
MEMBERS of Maidstone Amateur Operatic Society agreed to stage Sister Act last March, but cancelled due to Covid-19. They set a new date at the Hazlitt
for March, 2021 – and now Covid has caused a second cancellation. They have agreed a third date – March 28-April 2, 2022 – and tick- ets are still valid.
Rural top 10
AYLESFORD has been named by CompareMyMove as one of the country’s top 10 countryside relo- cation areas. The average home price in
Aylesford is £406,000 against a Kent-wide average of £238,000.
downsmail.co.uk
Council ‘failing to deal with ytipping blight’
A COUNCIL’s “failure” to en- force tougher penalties to brazen fly-tippers has come in for fierce criticism from one of its own members.
Independent borough councillor Eddie Powell says the deterrents offered by Maidstone Borough Council are “completely inade- quate”
for dealing scourge.
The latest incident, a huge mound of rubbish including the re- mains of an Australian Christmas tree and household furniture, hap- pened in broad daylight last month near the home of Cllr Powell, at the junction of Chegworth Lane and Chegworth Road, near Harriet- sham.
Cllr Powell said: “Images of fly- tipping are an all too familiar sight, but for it to happen at 10am on a Tuesday morning means we have lost all hope.
“The deterrents in place are def- initely not adequate. The incident
with the
do not do enough. I do not know if it is a lack of people or whatever, but it is clearly not enough.” An MBC spokesman said: “So far in 2020, a total of £6,800 in fixed penalty notices (FPNs) have been issued to flytippers in Maidstone, and a further £2,700 in FPNs for duty of care offences have been is- sued to households that have failed to ensure their waste is removed correctly.”
Sergeant Darren Walshaw of the
in Harrietsham happened right next to a CCTV warning sign.” Anti-flytipping campaigner and borough councillor Gill Fort (pic- tured), of Leeds, said: “Maidstone Borough Council is responsible for preventing this scourge and pros- ecuting offenders, and we simply
Rural Task Force said: “Fly-tipping is not just littering; it is organised criminality. The problem blights communities and some waste, like asbestos, can pose a significant health risk to the public.” A spokesman for the landown- ers’ body CLA said: “In 2018/29, there were 1,634 fly-tipping inci- dents reported on public land in Maidstone, compared with 1,041 in 2017/18 – a rise of 57%, the biggest increase in the county and one of the largest in the country.”
No police as crowds gather for funeral
KENT Police have come under fire
for “failing” to enforce
Covid-19 lockdown rules for fu- nerals.
Pride award for Tony
A SIX-year-old amputee has been honoured at this year’s Pride of Britain Awards. Tony Hudgell, who had to have his legs amputated as a result of abuse
from his biological parents, won the Pride of Britain Good Morning Britain Young Fundraiser Award. Tony, from Kings Hill, walked 10km on his prosthetic legs to raise more
than £1.5million for the Evelina London Children’s Hospital, which had saved his life as a baby. Ant and Dec presented the honour to the Discovery School pupil during
a visit to Hamleys toy shop as part of the ITV show. Dressed as Christmas tree soldiers, they jumped out of a pile of toys to surprise him.
16
A burial on November 9 was at- tended by hundreds of people, but when officers were called in to enforce the breach at the Maid- stone Cemetery, Sutton Road, no one turned up, claimed a resident. The 81-year-old, who reported the incident to Kent Police, said: “There must have been a couple of hundred people and a couple of motorbikes that made a racket. “It looked more like a demon- stration. There was no attempt at social distancing and was in clear breach of all the guidelines. “I rang Kent Police who took down some details and they indi- cated to me it would be dealt with, but no police turned up. They had the chance to feel a few collars.” At about 5pm, the resident’s phone rang. He said: “It was Kent Police asking if it was still going on. I was staggered. They were ringing me!” Government guidelines state:
“Funeral ceremonies must have no more than 30 people attending, whether indoors or outdoors.” Independent borough council-
lor Eddie Powell said: “I can un- derstand that people want to say goodbye to people they love, but the rules are there for a reason. There are plenty of ways to get the message to people to stay away.” Chief Inspector Ray Quiller
said: “Due to other urgent calls re- quiring the immediate attendance of patrols, officers were unable to respond and the informant was updated accordingly.”
Kent Police crime commis- sioner Matthew Scott was ap- proached for a comment but did not respond. l See letters, pages 45&46
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