On Friday last week I joined the Chair of the Environment Agency, Emma Howard Boyd, for the opening of the Broomhill Sands and Jury’s Gap coastal defence scheme. This completes a £30million investment which will protect thousands of homes on Romney Marsh. It also follows the £60million spent by the government on building the new […]
On Friday I visited Dungeness B nuclear power station to meet a group of apprentices learning their trade with EDF and to answer their questions. Dungeness B is a major source of jobs in the constituency, directly employing 550 people and supporting another 200 contractors. These jobs are particularly vital to the Marsh economy, which […]
This Christmas the news has been full of terrible images of flooding in the north of England, and our sympathies go to everyone who has been driven out of their homes. We should also thank the emergency services who have worked so hard over the last week to help them. We are fortunate in Kent […]
Last week the state visit of President Xi Jinping of China heralded a series of announcements of investments from that country into Britain, totalling over £30billion. One of the most significant of these agreements was the decision of the China General Nuclear Power Corporation to invest in the building of the new nuclear power station […]
While driving around the Marsh for my advice surgeries last Friday I was able, not for the first time, to admire the many properties flying Romney Marsh's new iconic flag. It was to my delight therefore that I was greeted at my New Romney surgery by Briony Kapoor, whose IMOS Foundation is behind the superb murals in […]
This week we received the excellent news that the energy company Ecotricity, has withdrawn its application for the development of six onshore wind turbines at Snave on Romney Marsh. Building six large masts in the middle of Romney Marsh would have been completely inappropriate and out of keeping with the landscape. I believe there should […]
On Friday evening this week I have been invited by the Sandgate Society to deliver the Greenwall lecture, at 7.30pm in the Chichester Hall. The Society has been working at the heart of life in Sandgate Village for over fifty years to preserve its character, conserve its fine historic buildings and to organise events to […]
Yesterday the Prime Minister unveiled the Conservative Party's manifesto with a positive message, telling voters: "we are on the brink of something special in our country. The next five years are about turning the good news in our economy into a good life for you and your family." Included in the manifesto were a number […]
Given the recent spell of cold weather there has been an understandable increase in concern over the local provision for people who have become homeless and are living on the streets. Last Thursday evening I visited the Folkestone Churches Winter Shelter at the Harbour Community Church in Harvey Street, which has for the last few […]
With 2015 well underway, and as we are making and following our resolutions for the new year, I would like to ask for your help with an event I am organising later next month. On Saturday 28th February I will be leading a community walk along the coast, from the lighthouse at Dungeness to the Step […]