Kent Tonight - Monday 8th July 2024
Catch up with all the latest news across your county with Bartholomew Hall.
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00:00Hello and welcome to Kentonite live on KMTV. I'm Bartholomew Hall. Here are your top stories
00:23on Monday 8th July. Old house, new tricks. Kent's fresh faces in parliament arrive for
00:30the first time after the election.
00:33Working spaces, living rooms and there's so much kind of higgledy-piggledy stuff going
00:36on behind the scenes. I think that, and I think that will keep coming. I think it'll
00:40be like Hogwarts or something. I'm going to discover new rooms every day.
00:43Weathering the storm, Mepham Farmer says rural industries will suffer under a Labour government.
00:49Nobody's mentioned about farming really. No one's mentioned about any budgets, any
00:53tax rise, where the money is going to go.
00:56And England win on penalties. Kent reacts as three Lions secure a spot in a Euro semi-final.
01:03Yeah, they'll probably go on and win it now. I reckon, yeah.
01:20First night as Kent recovers from a historic night of Labour victories on election night.
01:26Kent's new MPs from all parties are descending on Westminster today as a new parliament is
01:31set to begin. What are their hopes and ambitions for the next five years? And what does their
01:35first few days in parliament look like? Our politics producer Oliver Leader de Sacks is
01:40at College Green for us live right now. Ollie, if you're there, tell me, how has it been
01:46at parliament today?
01:50Well, Bartholomew, it has been quite a hectic day. It doesn't look like it right now. It's
01:55quite empty outside the House of Commons. But earlier today, hustle and bustle as MPs
02:00from across the country and the county came to the parliament for the first time. Kent
02:05has 12 new MPs out of 18. Ten Labour, one Liberal Democrat, one Conservative. And it
02:14is a fresh parliament. 412 seats have gone to Labour. And it is a very different environment.
02:23And this week is going to be a bit like political freshers week as MPs learn their way around
02:29the Commons, what they can do, what they can't do, where they can go, where they can't go,
02:33how to vote. It is all up in the air for them. And I did have to ask the Conservative MP,
02:40the only new Conservative MP for Kent, Katie Lamb, what her role is going to be in this
02:46new parliament. And given the scale of the Labour majority.
02:52This seat, the will of Kent, the seat that I live in and the seat that I now represent
02:55is a new seat. And it's a properly rural seat. It's a countryside constituency. And so my
03:00big priority is to stand up for the countryside, to stand up for that voice. You know, for
03:04better or worse, Labour is broadly an urban party. We're going to see in the government
03:08mostly MPs that have very urban seats and the countryside is going to need a champion.
03:12And so I hope and I plan to do everything that I can to fill that role.
03:21But of course, it is the Conservatives that aren't the majority party. It is Labour,
03:27in fact, who have taken control of the Commons. And it is after diligent campaigning in Kent,
03:33there was four target seats they're aiming for. Rochester and Strude, Gillingham and Raynham,
03:38East Thanet, Dover and Deal. They won all of those and more, including places like Ashford,
03:43which has been Conservative for more than a hundred years. And I did ask Polly Billington,
03:49the Labour East Thanet MP, what it's been like building that network of Labour MPs in the county
03:57over the last couple of days. Well, I set up a WhatsApp group
04:01with the background seat candidates ages ago when there was only a handful of them.
04:05And each time on Thursday night, we saw more people winning. I was saying,
04:09I need their phone number. I need to add them to the WhatsApp group.
04:12And today, finally, we've got all 11 Labour MPs on the Labour MPs WhatsApp group.
04:17Well, I think there's some big issues that matter to all of us. Because so many of us
04:22have got coastal communities, we're going to be particularly concerned about the sewage.
04:25But all of us have some, I think all of us have southern water as our major water provider. So
04:30we'll be wanting to hold them to account. We've also, most of us, apart from the Medway seats,
04:35have to deal with Kent County Council. And we'll be looking to see what they will do,
04:39particularly the concerns that we've got about their announcement today,
04:42about revising the access to special educational need provision. And I think we will want to
04:48see what we can do to be able to protect our constituents on that.
04:53All our Kent MPs will have to learn fast, though, because it is the state opening next Wednesday.
04:58And all eyes will be on the King's speech for what the Labour government will be delivering
05:03for people in Kent and across the country.
05:07Thank you very much, Ollie, for those details. Clearly a very busy
05:10day in Parliament there, if you heard some of those sirens in the background.
05:16Investigations are underway after a man and a woman have been found dead in
05:19Here, we can show you pictures from earlier this morning when emergency services were called to the
05:24butchery surgery, where they found the two 90-year-olds dead. Officers are clearly still
05:30at the scene here, along with at least two of their response cars, two ambulances and
05:34a smaller response van. You can read more at kentonline.
05:4023 new pods for homeless people are being stacked into place in Ashford as the cost of
05:45new pods for homeless people are being stacked into place in Ashford as the cost of
05:49temporary accommodation soars a lot across the county. These pods are being installed
05:54close to the entrance of Henwood Industrial Estate. They're designed to be an energy-efficient
05:58alternative to building new homes. The scheme, called Fortis House, features Ashford Borough
06:03Council's first net-zero carbon properties, which are designed to give people a temporary
06:08roof over their heads whilst they seek permanent accommodation.
06:15Next tonight, muddy fields and grey skies. This year's Kent County show wasn't just
06:20overcast with the bad weather, but may be overshadowed with reactions to a new
06:24Labour government. Criticised for just 87 words on farming in their manifesto,
06:29those in the industry say a storm is brewing under the party's control.
06:33But with promises to make schemes for farmers and nature,
06:36is there hope for such a key part of Kent's economy? Abi Hook has more.
06:40Not quite what you'd expect for the annual Kent County show, but what is to be expected?
06:49The British public still enjoying it. For more than 100 years, Dettling Showground has
06:54been celebrating the agricultural sector, getting people engaged with the rural
06:59challenges the county faces, one being the weather.
07:03Are you still enjoying yourself despite the weather?
07:05Yeah, of course. Yeah, it's still good. It's good.
07:07I think the rain has kind of made the day more fun, actually.
07:12It's the first time I've been. I've had such a nice time.
07:14Honestly, the rain hasn't mattered. It's been lovely.
07:17First time here. Definitely will be back. Amazing.
07:19We're British. We're just having a good fun, even though it's raining.
07:22We're having a great time. It's all good fun. There is some shelter,
07:25so that helps. And we've had food, which is always fun.
07:27I'm a bit of a heels and dress girl, so I think I am going to be wearing my trainers
07:30up on there. So, health and safety, I think.
07:33Need to get some wellies for next year.
07:35Wow. As I'm talking to you, the sun is coming out.
07:38You must be like a good luck charm. Well, I'm not going to hold my breath.
07:42Call me a pessimist. But it's been on and off,
07:44but we're not going to let it stop us.
07:46The same pessimism from farmers, too,
07:49worried the new government won't be aiming in their direction.
07:55Well, Kent was clearly a target for Labour,
07:57hitting slightly more of a bullseye than I just did there.
08:00But what does it mean for the future of the producers and traders
08:03that come here every year to a show like the Kent County Show?
08:06And what does it mean for the future of farming in Kent?
08:10In the manifesto for Labour, in the manifesto for Lib Dems,
08:12all the manifesto for Conservatives, before the general election, there's nothing in it.
08:17Ru and Matt are young farmers looking after a rare breed of sheep in Mepham.
08:22They have 30 of just 500 in the country as a way of maximising profits.
08:28But they say that could all change in the next five years.
08:32Nobody's mentioned about farming, really.
08:34Nobody's mentioned about any budgets, any tax wise, when the money is going to go.
08:38And I can't see, as every farmer I've spoken to in the last week,
08:41the next five years is going to be the worst ride we've ever had.
08:45The last four years have been bad enough.
08:46The last 20 years have been bad enough.
08:48But the next five years is going to be awful.
08:50Because I can't see what Keir Starmer or the new cabinet are going to do.
08:53We're quite small.
08:53We're very small compared to, you know, a huge commercial farmer that's got a thousand acres.
08:58We're nowhere near that.
08:59So what would you do?
09:01What would be the next step?
09:03What would be the next plan for a small farm like you
09:05if you don't get the support you need over the next five years?
09:08Have you got a plan B?
09:09There is a plan B.
09:10Open to the public more.
09:12You know, it's going to be...
09:13You're in a...
09:13You're tired because you don't want to buy any more stock
09:15because you're unsure of your current stock.
09:17You don't want to go...
09:18So, you know, it's...
09:19You're looking...
09:20It's again going back to the government telling you to diversify.
09:23You know, but you don't see a GP building a shop at the end of their road, do you?
09:26You know, it's all about farmers diversifying.
09:28And that's going to be really hard.
09:30Labour's manifesto pledges for half of all food purchased across the public sector
09:35to be locally produced or certified to higher environmental standards.
09:39Also, the party want to introduce a land use framework
09:43and make environment land management schemes work for farmers and nature.
09:48Despite the grey clouds overhead,
09:50there's still some hope for the future of farming.
09:53So no matter how the votes have swung here in Kent,
09:57will the resilience of farmers weather any storm?
10:01Abbey Hook for KMTV in Detling.
10:06You can watch back the rest of our reports at our website,
10:09kmtv.co.uk, like this one.
10:12It's been more than a year since the Swanscombe landslip.
10:15Investigations might be underway,
10:17but when this major A road will reopen remains a mystery.
10:22But a message from locals is clear.
10:24It's causing them a nightmare,
10:25where lorries cutting through their neighbourhood
10:28instead of using official diversions.
10:31They're not meant to come down here.
10:32And when they do, they sometimes cause damage.
10:35I expect to be asked to park your car if you drive just for a short while.
10:38And then a lorry comes along and takes the side of it off.
10:41My wing mirror has been taken off as well.
10:43I mean, my husband has put it back on with silver tape,
10:46so it doesn't look so bad.
10:47But obviously, I would have lost my wing mirror.
10:50But when you open the door to the car,
10:53you can see in here it's all crumpled,
10:57which means that this whole panel,
11:00this whole lot would need to be replaced because it's one big panel.
11:03She worries there'll just be too many repairs needed to her car
11:07and her insurance will simply write it off.
11:10But this isn't her greatest fear.
11:12I'm saying that something's going to happen.
11:14Someone's going to get run over.
11:15Something is going to happen,
11:17whether, you know, whether it's a lorry or if it's a car.
11:21But we've all shared the same concern that someone,
11:23we think someone will eventually get run over because of what's going on.
11:26KCC says they'll ensure there is clear signage
11:29and they'll continue to work closely with partners
11:31to find a solution to the issue.
11:33But with no lorry signs already up,
11:36residents say it's a ticking time bomb before something major happens.
11:41Gabriel Morris in Swanscombe.
11:44Plenty more news to come after the break,
11:46including reaction to England's penalty win.
11:48See you in just a few minutes.
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15:10Hello and welcome back to Kentonite live on KMTV.
15:14Now, in less than 20 years,
15:17almost 30,000 homes will be built in Medway
15:20if new proposals from the council are adopted.
15:23The next stage of the local authority's local plan consultation
15:27is set to open next week.
15:28It could see 50% of development being built on greenfield land to meet targets.
15:33However, Medway council are keen for people to voice their views.
15:37Our local democracy reporter Gabriel Morris joins me in the studio now.
15:40Gabriel, explain to me what exactly is the local plan?
15:44Well, all councils are required to have a local plan.
15:47It influences what development goes where
15:50and councils say make sure it's sustainable.
15:52I think an easy way to think about this is think of a local plan
15:56like a big complex recipe for a complex dish.
16:00It tells you what ingredients you need to put in,
16:03how much to use and what steps you need to take in.
16:05And in a similar way, the local plan will tell the council where to build homes,
16:09schools, road and other infrastructure in the local area.
16:13And without that, it could be a bit of a mess,
16:15like a complex recipe if you didn't follow the steps there.
16:19So in Medway, there is a huge demand for homes
16:23and to meet government quotas, they need to build 28,000 new homes by 2041.
16:31The preferred method, there are three different ways that are going to go around this,
16:35is to build on brownfield land first.
16:39Now, Medway councils think they could build around about 50% of that on there
16:43and the other 50% would have to come from greenfield land.
16:47Now, let's not get greenfield and greenbelt land confused.
16:50There are little patches of greenbelt land, that's protected spaces in Medway.
16:54And I was speaking to Medway council today
16:56and they don't think they will have to build on those.
16:58But obviously, we have seen the Labour government today come out and say,
17:02well, actually, we might go to councils and say build on your greenbelt land
17:05to ensure that new homes come into the local area.
17:08And Medway council were telling me that they would be open to changing that
17:12if need be and the government instructed them to do so.
17:15Now, this local plan would also see the controversial decision
17:19to develop Chatham Docks if it goes ahead on their preferred method.
17:22But the council are keen to emphasise that this is a consultation.
17:26That consultation opens next week.
17:29And Medway residents will have the opportunity to voice their opinion on this.
17:32And it is important because this will shape the local area up to 2041.
17:37And they're really particularly keen for the younger generation
17:40to voice their views on that as well.
17:43And without this plan, there's the fear there could be unsustainable development.
17:47This plan would see 67,000 people coming to the area
17:50if you look at average house people who live in the home.
17:53And I asked the council in charge of this on Medway council,
17:56is there the infrastructure currently in place
17:59to support a near 70,000 population increase?
18:03No, I don't think we do, actually.
18:05And that's partly why this plan is needed.
18:07The plan isn't just a housing plan, it's a housing about the whole community.
18:10It's all based around sustainability.
18:12And the understanding of sustainability is about the economy,
18:15it's about community, and it's about the environment.
18:18So we've got to get all those three elements right when we do this plan properly.
18:21And that's why we need this new infrastructure coming alongside
18:24any developments that take place.
18:26So you're absolutely right, we don't have the infrastructure now,
18:28but the plan is to put that infrastructure in place.
18:32Now, with the cost-of-living crisis causing the price of everyday items to grow,
18:37the amount of people having to lie on food banks has been steadily increasing.
18:41This is why our sister station, KMFM,
18:43have decided to relaunch their Tons of Tins campaign,
18:46which garnered a staggering 6.77 tonnes of food
18:50for food banks across the county last year.
18:53Over the next six weeks, KMFM will be looking to repeat this success.
18:56And to find out more, I caught up with Robb Wills earlier.
19:00Robb joins me now. Robb, thank you very much for being here.
19:02Once again, the Tons of Tins campaign is being launched.
19:05First of all, can you tell me a little bit about it?
19:08Give me a bit of the background to the campaign.
19:11So Tons of Tins started last year at Bartholomew
19:14because we kind of got a lot of feedback
19:18on how many people were using food banks here in Kent.
19:22And I think it shocked almost everybody in the team.
19:26It's a lot more people than you would think.
19:29They're your neighbours, they're people that you work with,
19:32people holding down full-time jobs.
19:34But just with the cost of living and mortgage rates
19:37going through the roof, et cetera,
19:39more people than ever are having to use food banks.
19:41And in the last 12 months, there's more research
19:44to show that it's grown again.
19:46So there's some research even suggesting that kind of 10% to 11%
19:51of people are living in food-insecure households.
19:55So we kind of felt like we needed to do something about that.
19:58And use the KMFM, MITE, the listeners,
20:01our awesome listeners, to see if we could help out a little.
20:05And, I mean, of course, it is an issue that we've reported here.
20:08Lots, specifically in Kent as well,
20:11lots of people using food banks.
20:13And those food bank operators as well telling us
20:15that the issue has just been getting worse, as you've been saying.
20:18What was the reaction to the last time around then?
20:22So the last time around, I remember sitting on the couch actually
20:25with Abby, and she was like, you know,
20:27what are you hoping for?
20:28And I said to her, I don't know.
20:30Because so, I mean, I know more people
20:35who are kind of on like breaking even,
20:39like getting to the end of every single paycheck
20:41and not having much left over, if anything.
20:44I thought, well, you know, how many people
20:46are actually going to be able to help us?
20:47So when we completed the four weeks, four and a bit weeks,
20:51with 6.77 tonnes of food, it genuinely was an emotional day
20:58because we had no idea that that's what we were going to get to.
21:01We hadn't really set an expectation.
21:03We just thought, do you know what?
21:04If we could deliver as many tins as possible,
21:08then it will have made an impact.
21:11Absolutely.
21:12And just that amount, the impact that it will have
21:14on so many families is just unthinkable
21:18to think of those who are in that situation.
21:20Finally, then, how is it, how can people get involved?
21:23And I understand you've got drop-off points
21:24at different parts of the county.
21:27So, yes, slight difference to last year.
21:29So there's three ways you can get involved.
21:32They are listed on the KMFM website.
21:34So if you check out kmfm.co.uk forward slash T-O-T,
21:38you can donate money online.
21:40So that's how a lot of people got involved last year.
21:42We raised just over £5,000 in the end, from memory.
21:45And then we go out with buying power to buy at a better rate.
21:50You can shop online and have it delivered to the KMFM studios,
21:54or we have donation points.
21:57So if you want to come and say hi in person,
21:59there are so many of them.
22:01There will be a partner near you.
22:04So if you do want to deliver in person, then please do.
22:07But yeah, check out the website.
22:08If you can help, and you'll hear me talking about this
22:11on the show tonight, even just giving £2
22:15will probably end up making five tins.
22:18And if we had even just 10% of our audience doing that,
22:21we will do a huge, huge amount of good for food banks here in Kent.
22:26Rob, it's incredible work that you and the KMFM team are doing.
22:29Thank you very much for joining us, and best of luck with the campaign.
22:33Now, let's take a quick look at the weather.
22:40We'll have rain across the county tonight.
22:43Lows of 14 degrees around the Mainstone and Tunbridge Wells areas.
22:47Going into tomorrow morning, looking to be cloudy.
22:49Rain continuing from this evening in Maidstone,
22:53turning slightly warmer as we head into the afternoon.
22:56Those clouds staying around, and that rain, of course,
22:59spreading back across the county as well.
23:01Here's the outlook for the rest of the week.
23:03What we can see here, those clouds sticking around,
23:05that rain as well, highs of 21.
23:07And finally, to sports, and this weekend, thousands across Kent
23:19watched on as England made it through to the semi-finals
23:22of this year's European Championships in Germany,
23:26knocking out Switzerland on penalties.
23:29It comes as bars and pubs across the county and elsewhere in the country
23:32will now be allowed to stay open later than usual this Wednesday,
23:36and the Three Lions look to take on the Dutch for a spot in the final.
23:39I went down to the new Ballers Dome at Bluewater
23:42to watch on with some other fans.
23:44It was the million pound kick.
23:46That is, of course, for owners of Kent's bars and pubs,
23:49for who them, it meant that bums were guaranteed to be on the seats,
23:53as England face off this weekend against Switzerland
23:56for a spot in the final four of this year's Euros.
24:00As fans have come to expect by now, it was a pretty nervous affair
24:04as things got under way, but with pints in hand
24:07and eyes glued to the big screen,
24:09especially here at Bluewater's new football club, Ballers,
24:12that unrelenting hope of a Three Lions success just wouldn't go away.
24:17That was until the 75th minute when the opposition scored.
24:24Time continued to tick on.
24:26These fans were beginning to hope for another miracle.
24:30All of a sudden...
24:35England were back in it and heading to extra time
24:38for the second game in a row.
24:40However, a lacklustre 30 minutes in extra time
24:43meant the crowds around the screens started to double.
24:46Everyone wanted to get their eyes on, or off, of England facing penalties.
24:51Even the manager of Wolverhampton Wanderers, Gary O'Neill,
24:55he just happened to show up whilst our cameras were rolling.
24:58Four perfect kicks, one perfect save,
25:02and it all came down to one man.
25:05Trent Alexander-Arnold stepped up to the mark and...
25:08CHEERING
25:17I mean, you see me now, I need the Air Force to calm down a bit.
25:20Unreal, unreal, great season for football.
25:23Fair play to Swiss, they gave it their all,
25:25but England are on top as always.
25:27I don't think they can do it, but they do it in the final minutes,
25:30as usual, don't they?
25:31Yeah, they're probably going to win it now, I reckon.
25:34You know, we've got some really good players,
25:36and I think that's how we should be looking.
25:38All the previous games, they were quite clicked like that.
25:40That's what I want to see.
25:41Do you think England can take it all the way to the finals now,
25:44maybe even a win?
25:45After today's game, definitely.
25:47After today's game, definitely.
25:49Jubilation from the fans.
25:51But for the owners, England's success means guaranteed business
25:55once again for at least one more special night.
25:58Yeah, it's definitely a benefit.
25:59We love the atmosphere.
26:00We love people being in the dome.
26:02We like people celebrating when we win, obviously.
26:06And it's just a great feeling to win and go through to the next round.
26:10So as Gareth Southgate's squad stare down the chance
26:13to play in the final in Germany,
26:15hospitality bosses back here would say,
26:17as far as the Euros are concerned, football has already come home.
26:22Bartholomew Hall for KMTV in Bluewater.
26:26Brilliant scenes there.
26:27And if you'd like to hear from Gary O'Neill, the Wolves manager,
26:30we did manage to grab a quick interview with him.
26:32If you stick around after the break for Invictus Sport,
26:35you can hear from him.
26:36We asked him what he thought about England making it through on penalties.
26:39But that is it from Kent tonight.
26:41There's plenty more news made just for Kent throughout the evening.
26:44Do stick around. Bye-bye.
26:52.