The damage done to the Folkestone to Dover railway line, caused by the erosion of the sea wall along the coastal stretch of the track, would appear to be far worse than was originally thought. It is important that the maintenance is carried out as swiftly as possible, working as they have to within the […]
At Christmas, as we gather around the crib for the nativity service we are asked, like the shepherds and wise men over 2,000 years ago, to follow the bright star to Bethlehem. Yet, throughout 2015, the eyes of the world appear to have been fixed just over 100 miles further east, to Syria and the […]
The consultation on the long term solution for Operation Stack has now begun and will close on 25th January 2016. You can find out more about the detailed plans here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/operation-stack-consultation-on-new-lorry-area-launches-today . It is important that everyone has there say. Thanks to the £250million funding that we have secured from the Chancellor of the Exchequer, […]
We have seen massive steps forward in education in our area over the last ten years. There are more opportunities now for young people to reach their full potential through education than ever before. The Folkestone School for Girls and the Harvey Grammar, continue to get excellent results, but we have also seen fantastic strides […]
George Osborne used his statement in the House of Commons last week, setting out the government’s spending review, to announce that he had allocated £250million towards preventing the chaos caused by Operation Stack. This is great news for Kent, and I am pleased that the Chancellor listened to our campaign for government funding to build […]
In two weeks time the Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne will present his Autumn Statement to the House of Commons. This speech will set out the government’s spending commitments and the budgets for the different departments. Last week I led a delegation of 12 MPs from Kent to see the Chancellor to urge him […]
The large numbers of migrants in the Calais ‘jungle’ camp have been causing major disturbances to services through the Channel Tunnel in recent days. This has involved hundreds of migrants charging the perimeter fencing and gaining access to the tracks; actions that not only endanger their lives, but those of other people as well. This […]
Last week Folkestone was hailed by the government as one of the ‘rising stars’ of town centre regeneration in England because of the “great strides made in improving their local high street”. It was one of ten runners up from across the country in the Great British High Streets competition, which is not bad going. […]
On Friday last week, I was delighted to welcome back to Folkestone, Tracey Crouch, the Minister for Sport, who went to school in the town. We visited the Folkestone Sports Centre and the Three Hills Sports complex on Cheriton Road. The Shepway Sports Trust also gave a presentation on their work across the district to improve the rates […]
Folkestone's Gurkha memorial statue was unveiled by Joanna Lumley on Sunday in glorious autumn sunshine, with Sujata Koirala, the First Lady of Nepal and leader of the Nepali Congress, also amongst a number of distinguished guests. The statue which stands in the town's Garden of Remembrance was sculpted by Rebecca Hawkins who was also present […]