Hopefully you are enjoying the spring weather and longer evenings. I’m pleased to present my latest newsletter, so do read on for important news affecting our town, including an exciting breakthrough for the Bandstand!
Approval of Local Plan
We have long had concerns about the new Local Plan which has been developed by Canterbury City Council; in particular the impact that new housing will have on green spaces, our water supplies and on local roads. An example being the proposal to build on the Beacon Road hockey fields.
The Plan came to a vote on 18th March, and despite the opposition of all of your local Conservative councillors, the Labour/Liberal administration used its majority to approve it. You can watch the playback of my speech criticising the plan here - https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1DoGHexGX7/
We now have a final public consultation before the Planning Inspector views the responses, conducts its hearing and makes its final decision. Please do consider commenting on the Plan, for example the proposals for new housing in Herne & Broomfield, Greenhill and Beacon Road, or on the transport strategy and the plan for our high streets. This is the last chance for us to influence development in our town and district. The consultation link is here and includes a full set of instructions for responding.
Thanks to local residents who worked with us to try and over-turn the local proposals. We have gained some concessions, but the latest plan is still wrong for the Bay.
At Long Last – Repairs to the Bandstand Stage!
In better news, I’m pleased to confirm that works will soon be underway to fix the structure of the Bandstand, followed by repairs to the stage itself.
It will be fantastic to see a full slate of music returned to the Bandstand, helping the Bay strengthen its reputation as a great place for live entertainment. This in turn will draw more visitors to our brilliant town, helping us regenerate the local economy.
Thanks to residents who signed our petition and worked alongside us as councillors to ensure the Council prioritised this project 🙌
Community Spotlight: Age UK, Herne Bay & Whitstable
It’s great to have the chance to shine a spotlight on some of our community heroes. The team of staff and volunteers at Age UK in Beltinge definitely fit that bill, providing care and support to huge numbers of elderly, frail and disabled residents in our area.
As such, I’m delighted to put a big shout out for Age UK who are expanding their team of volunteers so that they can do even more great work. Full details of their rewarding volunteer roles can be found below, so I hope you might want to find out more and support this great cause:
https://www.ageuk.org.uk/hernebayandwhitstable/get-involved/volunteers/
Chaos at County Hall
Last May, Reform UK took control of Kent County Council with a large majority. Sadly for residents, it has been a shambles ever since, with council tax rising and essential services at risk:
- Instead of cutting our council tax as promised, Reform raised our bills by 4%, a whole 1% above inflation (by contrast, the last Conservative administration cut council tax bills by 3% in real terms)
- Having also promised to make huge savings to council expenditure, the Reform cabinet members soon U-turned, admitting that the Conservatives had already made so many efficiencies that there was no waste left to go after
- A huge wave of infighting was triggered by the Reform leader’s outspoken rant at colleagues, ultimately leading to mass resignations and a breakaway group forming on the council
- With our roads littered with potholes and social care in crisis – Reform voted to spend £140,000 per year on political advisors. Clearly not a priority for Kent residents!
At Kent Conservatives we have launched a petition calling for a debate at Kent County Council to reverse these spending priorities. If you haven’t already signed it, please do so here, as your voice can help ensure money is invested in potholes and people, not politicians.
A Town Council for Herne Bay?
In May, Canterbury City Council will be asking for your views on whether you would like to see greater local decision-making, possibly via new town or parish councils. For instance, ensuring local involvement in planning application consultations, being able to input into Highway Improvement Plans and deciding where to spend developer contributions on local infrastructure.
As Local Government Reorganisation is well under way, new unitary authorities will take over from Canterbury and Kent County Council on April 1 2028, potentially taking democratic decision-making further away from local residents. Town and parish councils could be a way to keep some decisions closer to local communities.
We will have more information to share on this topic soon.
That’s all for now, so on behalf of our Group, I wish all of you a very happy Easter,
Your Conservative Councillor team for Herne Bay:
Rachel Carnac, Robert Jones, Grace Paget, David Thomas, Liz Harvey, Jeanette Stockley, Ian Stockley and Dan Watkins
