Map wars intensify in Kent reorganisation
Plus slogan blurs council neutrality line, what's going on at KCC this week, awful person has a point, news in brief, and more
We seem to talk about maps a lot here, as we move closer to the grand reorganisation of Kent into new unitary authorities. It’s usually a pretty dry affair, but a proposal this week has sparked an angry response from one council leader, proving that any consensus for the county will be challenging to achieve. Further down, we have news of a questionable publicity campaign from KCC, other news from the authority, sad news of an awful person having a point, news in brief, and more.
Map wars intensify in Kent reorganisation
It feels like we’ve gone on a lot here about the imminent local government reorganisation, which will see every council in Kent abolished and reshaped into (most likely) three or four unitary authorities to deliver services.
Up until now, the process has been broadly civil, despite different areas having different priorities. Now, as the deadline for final proposals approaches, things are getting a little more testy.
This was demonstrated this week by a plan proposed by Medway Council leader Vince Maple that was received so poorly by Tonbridge and Malling leader Matt Boughton that we wouldn’t be surprised to see him riding up Blue Bell Hill in a tank to protect his territory.
Until now, all of the future potential layouts for Kent have been largely hypothetical and lacking in detail. Five district councils were early out of the blocks with a proposal for a three unitary structure across Kent, which retained existing district boundaries but grouped four or five together to form new, larger unitaries.
An internal report by Kent County Council seemed to agree with this assessment, rating the three unitary model as the most effective. This went out of the window this week, when KCC leader Linden Kemkaran instead proposed a one unitary model to a meeting of Kent leaders. The proposal is nothing if not ambitious. The government has set out guidelines that the new unitary authorities should cover roughly 500,000 people, while Kent and Medway have a combined population of around 1.9 million.
As it stands, the largest unitary council in the UK is North Yorkshire, which has a population of 600,000, so Kent would be attempting to create something three times larger. A limited number of unitary councillors administering an area so large would be an interesting experiment, if nothing else. The plans also don’t make clear how a larger strategic authority (part of the government plans) would work if the unitary already covered the strategic area. The proposals put forward also include three ‘area assemblies,’ suggesting an edging back toward two tiers of governance that the government is trying to abolish.
Somehow though, this wasn’t the most controversial proposal brought to the meeting. That honour goes to Medway Council leader Vince Maple, who arrived with a four unitary plan he and Labour colleagues have supported since the start of the conversations.
At first glance, there are some sensible rationalisations in the plan, particularly around the Medway border. Currently, parts of Walderslade and Lordswood sit within Tonbridge and Malling or Maidstone, and using the A2/M2 as a clear dividing line does make sense. As a result, this does mean this is the first plan to propose breaking up existing district areas, most notably in Swale, which would see everything but Faversham and some rural areas joining the North unitary, with the rest joining the new Mid one.
Mid turns out to be an apt name on the basis that while there are arguments that make sense for North, West, and East, Mid is a fudge of everything that is left over. It’s hard to identify much that connects the communities of Maidstone, Faversham, and Romney Marsh other than that they didn’t have anywhere else to go.
It was Medway’s border with Tonbridge and Malling that caused the biggest row though, with TMBC leader Matt Boughton calling the proposal ‘appalling and disrespectful.’ His issue primarily came down to the plans splitting Blue Bell Hill and Walderslade from the rest of the Tonbridge and Malling area, leading to an angry Facebook post that concluded with ‘We will not let Medway break us apart.’
His issue largely seems to centre around Medway not consulting with TMBC before presenting the plan, which is perhaps fair. It also echoes a recent situation where TMBC approved plans to build temporary accommodation on the border of Medway without consulting their neighbour.
Medway claims they were just putting forward one option and that all of the Kent districts had agreed that they would put together a potential four unitary map, so perhaps it shouldn’t have been that surprising. Nonetheless, as it stands, there is little evidence that any district outside of Medway supports the proposed four unitary idea.
With the clock ticking down on local government reorganisation’s November deadline, it is looking increasingly unlikely that any consensus will be reached across the county. As such, new maps will most likely be imposed upon the county by central government, with the possibility that no one will end up with anything they like.
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Reform slogan blurs council neutrality line
Local councils are, by their nature, political institutions. They are run by elected politicians who will work to achieve their political goals. Despite this, councils are supposed to be politically impartial themselves, where public resources shouldn’t be used to promote or influence support for political parties.
With that in mind, you can perhaps imagine the eyebrow raising at Kent Current Towers over the past fortnight when Kent County Council began promoting their ‘Reforming Kent’s Roads’ campaign.
Section 2.2.1 of the Local Government Act 1986 clearly states, ‘A local authority shall not publish any material which, in whole or in part, appears to be designed to affect public support for a political party.’
It is very difficult to see how a slogan centred around the word ‘reform’ and good work being done doesn’t fall foul of these rules.
Of course, there are, in reality, very few consequences for breaking such rules, as our public institutions are built mainly on polite agreements to play by the rules rather than anything with teeth.
Last week, we asked Kent County Council whether they viewed the campaign as being in breach of the rules. We also asked if any internal discussions were held about its legality before publication.
We received no response to these requests.
What else is happening at KCC this week?
Kent County Council launched a budget consultation this week, claiming they still need to fill a £50m shortfall for the coming year. Much of the consultation is framed by asking how ‘comfortable’ the respondent would be with cutting in various areas, including adult social care and children’s services.
GB News have looked at the first 100 days of Reform being in charge.
KCC leader Linden Kemkaran spoke at a Reform press conference, claiming that immigration had made women and girls in the UK less safe.
KCC cabinet member for the environment David Wimble went on the YouTube show of former Lib Dem turned climate change denier Lembit Opik to talk about Reform replacing the Conservatives and, of course, immigration.
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Thanet’s swearing ban allows awful person to make a point
Every now and again, the worst person you know has a point.
So it was this week when Toby Young of last week’s Kent independence column rolled into Margate to threaten Thanet District Council over their recent Public Space Protection Order, which, among many other things, prohibits swearing.
Of course, things aren’t quite that simple. The PSPO is designed to give powers against all kinds of antisocial behaviour, and the swearing provision is just one part of it. Thanet District Council leader Rick Everitt has said publicly that the rules don’t prohibit ‘casual swearing,’ but rather abusive and threatening language. The wording of the rules on the PSPO still leaves an element of interpretation, though.
One could be forgiven for thinking Thanet District Council hadn’t entirely thought through its proposals. Indeed, last week, a number of alterations were approved to the wording, as it turned out that they’d accidentally banned crying and breastfeeding in the areas covered.
Last year, Thanet proposed similar restrictions on foul language and backed down when they were threatened with legal action. As the restrictions returned this year, so too did the legal threats.
This led Toby Young, Spectator stalwart and professional grievance machine, to march on Margate this week with several activists from his ‘Free Speech Union.’ They brought trucks plastered with the face of Cllr Everitt alongside slogans like ‘Stubbed your toe? Remember it’s a crime if you swear in Thanet.’
Perhaps the most baffling protest was their signs that read ‘Thanet District Council doesn’t give a f*** about free speech.’ For a group standing up for free speech against a swearing ban, they remain remarkably prudish about using the word ‘fuck.’
Young’s Free Speech Union has promised to launch a legal action against Thanet and then ban, confident they will win. Whether or not they do or can remains to be seen, but the fact someone as generally odious as Young is managing to score points out of a council trying to create silly rules is probably the most disappointing thing of all.
In brief
🚓 Kent Police are investigating three murders in the county over the past week. A 49-year-old man was killed in Leysdown, a man in his 30s was stabbed in Gravesend, and another man in his 30s was killed in Sittingbourne.
👮 A woman threatened with arrest by Kent Police for attending a pro-Palestine protest in Canterbury has launched legal action against the force.
🧑⚖️ A Dartford councillor went on trial this week for encouraging violent disorder after he called for the throats of far-right protestors to be cut. Ricky Jones, a Labour councillor at the time, now sits as an independent on Dartford Borough Council.
🎣 JD Vance, US Vice President and billionaire-backed everyman, visited Kent last week to meet with Foreign Secretary David Lammy. Unsurprisingly, he was greeted by protestors. The meeting ended with Lammy reporting himself to the Environment Agency for illegally fishing with Vance.
🗳️ Two Maidstone councillors have resigned over development plans for Lenham. Two seats will now be contested in a by-election, with the ruling Green and Independent Group on Maidstone Borough Council now being reduced to 12 members, one behind the Conservatives.
💡 Otterpool Park, an 8,500 home all-electric new town between Ashford and Folkestone, will run on renewable energy and be able to share power back to the grid.
🗄️ It’s been a big week for major planning applications, with proposals including a scoping opinion for 520 homes west of Paddock Wood, 215 homes on the waterfront of Maidstone, 150 homes in Eccles, and 100 homes in Hadlow.
🏘️ Maidstone Borough Council is set to decide on a planning application for 85 new homes in Coxheath next week, with officers recommending that the proposals be approved.
🏊 Elsewhere, Dover District Council are set to approve plans to replace Tides Leisure Centre in Deal.
🦼 Disability campaigners have said they will seek a judicial review if Ashford Borough Council doesn’t oppose a new pedestrian bridge that excludes wheelchair users.
📚 Nearly three years after it closed due to a water leak, Kent County Council has put the Folkestone Library building up for sale. Despite this, the council insists it is working to reopen a library somewhere in Folkestone town centre.
🚢 Centrica, the owner of British Gas, has agreed a £1.5bn deal to buy the liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in Medway.
🧱 North Kent College will share a £100m funding pot as it becomes one of ten specialist construction colleges in the UK, as part of a government push to train more bricklayers, roofers, and electricians.
🤢 Sainsbury’s in Maidstone has been awarded a two-star food hygiene rating after inspectors found filthy shelves, mould in fridges and freezers, and bins ‘beyond cleaning.’
🚲 A Dover councillor is locked in a dispute with Dover Town Council over a bike rack.
⚽ The National League are investigating the ownership of Ebbsfleet United after one of its directors was convicted of fraud.
🦫 Wildlife campaigners are raising money for a beaver mural in Canterbury.
🎥 A film production company has asked permission to turn a farm in Selling into a film set for four months. This wouldn’t usually be particularly exciting, but the company behind the plans is SDTA Productions, a production company linked to Steven Spielberg.
More Currents
We sat down with legendary comic creator and director Dave McKean for our latest big weekend interview. We talked to him about why he isn’t interested in making superhero comics, why he stopped working with Neil Gaiman, filming Michael Sheen, and lots more.
“I was interested in creativity, it is my God as it were”
Dave McKean exploded onto the comics scene nearly forty years ago with Violent Cases, which he followed up with Black Orchid and the bestselling graphic novel Arkham Asylum. He has gone on to direct feature films, including Mirrormask, and create unique book cover designs. We caught up with him to discuss why he didn’t make more superhero comics, why he stopped working with Neil Gaiman, and how he ended up filming Michael Sheen in Port Talbot.
Footnotes
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