downsmail.co.uk Something better change


IF THE Irish dramatist Sean O’Casey is to be believed, all the world’s a stage and most of us are desperately unrehearsed. Given our collective experiences over the past 12 months, it is fair to say we had no inkling of what was to come or whether any of us could cope. As we emerge from the gloom, the successful vaccination roll-out continues and springtime beckons, one can see why PM Boris Johnson was keen to hold local elections on May 6.


The conditions would appear near- perfect. At the time of writing, the Tories are seven poll points ahead of Labour nationally and the Liberal Democrats are nowhere.


But as Downs Mail columnist Dennis


Fowle pointed out in our last edition, the Maidstone Borough Council (MBC) results might appear rather harder to call. Local issues will come into play, and the ruling Liberal Democrat-led alliance’s handling of the borough’s housing allocation imposed by central government, the controversial Local Plan review and the council-led 4,000 unit development at Lenham Heath are high on the list.


The coalition must defend attempts to “mothball” the Hazlitt Theatre to save money in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis.


Council taxpayers can ask why promised highway “improvements” remain un-started, much less nished, while house-building continues unabated. Meanwhile we, the luckless inhabitants, live with the consequences in impotent rage.


Despite murmurs to the contrary, the left-of-centre MBC alliance lacks synergy with the Tory Kent County Council, which delivers on highways for the borough.


While the differences may not always be purely tribal, there has been a disconnect which has prevented any advancement of, say, the Leeds-Langley relief road for three decades.


For instance, promises made at a public meeting at the Great Danes in late 2017 to persuade the two authorities to work together on the bypass, under the


Don’t forget infrastructure


THE concerns outlined below have been addressed to Helen Whately MP on many occasions, without a breakthrough in addressing the matter. For over 12 months now, I have been


attempting to highlight and expose the areas of Mid Kent blighted by excessive housing development. As a resident of ME17, the increase has been signicantly noticeable and a concern for infrastructure


SimonSays SIMON FINLAY Editor simon.nlay@downsmail.co.uk Twitter @Simonnlay6500


guidance of local MPs, came to zero. And the cross-party, well-meaning Joint Transportation Board is a toothless watchdog with no bark.


“ ”


This inertia really translates into: “Put up with it, because nothing’s going to change.” Well, something better change. Up on the North Downs, there is a nascent movement coming to life like bluebells on a woodland oor. Borough councillors Tom and Janetta Sams are seeking fellow independents with no political allegiances to stand for election in their own communities, if not


The right candidate could do very well


in Maidstone ...


in May, perhaps in the future. The pair, who see change, compassion and listening as the binding themes, now have the endorsement of the respected, white-suited BBC war correspondent, Martin Bell, the former independent MP who won the Tatton seat in 1997 on an anti-sleaze ticket.


And there is a history of indie


movements in Kent. The Dover Independents’ founder, David Hannent, who orchestrated the winning of six town council seats in 2003, recalls: “It was the right time to do it and the message was clear.


“Independents come along when there’s an impasse – when party politics is getting nowhere and nothing’s getting done.


“Treat the Press as your friend, not your enemy. That’s my advice.” Fellow DI member Chris Precious warns: “I got involved because I don’t


to support villages that are becoming disturbingly sprawling urban districts. My attention has been drawn to an area close to home, Lenham & Harietsham, where we nd ourselves with a relentless house-building programme, where Maidstone Borough Council has exceeded its target set under the terms of the "existing local plan".


Although I understand the importance of the road and rail links to London, statistics released by the media last month


like political parties…the trouble is that as soon as you give the independents a name, as we did, it’s doomed because people say you’ve become a party.” In 2007, in nearby Folkestone, the all- faith Shepway Independents fared less well, but shook the old order, says its agitator-in-chief Colin Tearle. Seasoned observers see the Sams as having three options. Firstly, they could eld as many candidates as come forward but, with limited time and resources available, will be hammered in every seat. Or secondly, the Sams could wait until the next set of elections and work the patches hard in the meantime. This would be sensible, but not terribly imaginative.


Lastly, the indies could eld one high-


prole candidate on May 6 in a single ward in what the Lib Dems once called a “decapitation strategy”, by taking down a big name, while deploying their new volunteers to assist, giving each of them campaigning experience. Mr Bell favours the third option. “My advice to the independents is to choose your battleground carefully, because the right candidate in the right seat could do very well in Maidstone,” he says. “Avoid Punch and Judy ghts and don’t speak ill of opponents is also sound advice, as is having a good


understanding with the local Press and presence on social media.”


The Sams plough their own furrow and will advise their new comrades accordingly. The approach is likely to be collegiate and shy of condescension, says a friend.


Their recent announcement is unlikely


to have been made without great thought and certainly not “desperately unrehearsed”.


By May 7, the Sams might learn if “the right time” is nigh. Democracy lies in our hands, a single voter with a single vote. Whether or not we use it, someone or other will end up in charge. And, as another Irishman, Christy Moore, once wryly observed: “Everyone in the graveyard votes the same.”


show MBC at 46% more completed housing than neighbouring councils. Why then, the continuous building programme, in particular for this area, without implementing the most important elements of infrastructure, such as capacity for schooling, doctors' surgeries, and improvements to the road network, which come under increasing strain and pressure as more and more families move to the area?


D Jenkins, via email 45


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