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24 February 2022 / 24 February 2022 by Stuart Jeffery
Greens have expressed anger at Maidstone Borough Council for watering down a 20mph motion and voting for the status quo during last night’s Full Council meeting. The motion which originally called for 20mph limits by default on residential roads and would have brought the Borough into line with much of the country, was reduced to […]
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15 February 2022 / 15 February 2022 by Stuart Jeffery
Maidstone Greens have reacted angrily to Kent County Council’s proposed cuts to bus services across the Borough. Eleven local services are at risk from the plans being presented to KCC’s Environment and Transport Cabinet Committee on Friday. The Greens have started an online petition to call on the council to invest rather than cut services. Stuart Jeffery, Green Party campaigner […]
7 February 2022 / 7 February 2022 by Stuart Jeffery
Kent County Council has been criticised for spending seven times more on road “improvements” than cycling or walking schemes across the Borough of Maidstone. When the A249 and A229 changes are factored in, this multiple rises to several hundreds of time more on roads. Stuart Jeffery, Green Party campaigner in Maidstone, “The difference in spending […]
2 February 2022 / 2 February 2022 by Stuart Jeffery
Local Green Party campaigner, Stuart Jeffery has questioned local MP Helen Grant over their stance on the Partygate scandal. With Boris Johnson being accused of lying to Parliament over parties held in No.10 Downing Street while the country was in lockdown, the Green Party has said that it is past time for the Prime Minister […]
24 January 2022 / 24 January 2022 by Stuart Jeffery
Green Party research shows that in 2020 raw sewage flowed into the River Medway and its tributaries for a total of 42,000 hours, the same as five sewers continually releasing raw sewage 24 hours each day for the whole year. Local Greens in Maidstone have vowed to keep a close eye on the water quality […]
12 January 2022 / 12 January 2022 by Stuart Jeffery
Maidstone Green Party campaigner, Stuart Jeffery is to present a petition, signed by almost every household in the road, to the Maidstone Joint Transportation Board this afternoon calling for a 20mph speed limit on Bower Mount Road and its surrounding streets. Stuart Jeffery said, “This is a surprisingly busy and fast road connecting London Road […]
13 December 2021 / 13 December 2021 by Stuart Jeffery
Maidstone Greens have called for the consultation on the Local Plan to be scrapped and restarted in their submission to the Council. They point to a variety of deep concerns that question the legality and validity of the draft Local Plan as well as the failure of the consultation to be accessible to all people […]
12 December 2021 / 12 December 2021 by Stuart Jeffery
With the announcement of the closure of Maidstone’s Park and Ride service, local Greens have issued a stark warning about congestion and air pollution increasing and have called for the Park and Ride funding to be used to provide real alternatives to travel by car. Stuart Jeffery, Maidstone Green Party, “It is frustrating to hear […]
7 December 2021 / 7 December 2021 by Stuart Jeffery
Maidstone Greens have called on the local Borough Council to extend the Local Plan consultation which has given residents just six weeks to review and comment on over 700 detailed pages. The Greens have called into question the validity of the consultation. They have written to the Council’s CEO calling for an extension or review. […]
30 November 2021 / 7 December 2021 by Stuart Jeffery
Local Greens have welcomed the new 20mph zone around Buckland Hill and St Peter’s Street in Maidstone as a boost for road safety and to help reduce pollution. Locally, the Greens have led campaigns for 20mph limits on all residential roads across the Borough. Stuart Jeffery, Green Party campaigner in Bridge Ward where the new […]
25 October 2021 / 20 November 2021 by Stuart Jeffery
29 September 2021 / 30 September 2021 by Stuart Jeffery
26 July 2021 / 26 July 2021 by Stuart Jeffery
Local Conservatives have triggered a consultation on how our local election voting system works. Currently we have the “thirds” system which in a three councillor ward one is elected each year over a four year cycle with one year off when county elections are held. The Conservative want to have one election for all seats […]
16 July 2021 / 16 July 2021 by Stuart Jeffery
Local Greens have challenged Maidstone Borough Council to up its game on climate change after they revealed a lack of ambition in its plans. At this week’s Council meeting, Stuart Jeffery asked what level of carbon reduction was planned by the council and was told that their plans will amount to only a 32% reduction […]
21 June 2021 / 21 June 2021 by Stuart Jeffery
Maidstone Greens have reacted angrily at the decision by the Secretary of State for Transport for the A249 Stockbury Roundabout “improvements” to proceed. Stuart Jeffery, who spoke for the Greens at the Public Inquiry last year has strongly criticised the decision as a climate failure. Stuart Jeffery, Maidstone Green Party: “In a few month’s time […]
11 February 2021 / 11 February 2021 by Stuart Jeffery
Maidstone Greens have criticised claims that free parking for electric vehicles, to be offered by the council in Maidstone, is the “single dramatic thing the council could do in the next year to two years”. The Greens highlight a range of measures that would have a greater impact on the Borough’s carbon emissions and that […]
27 January 2021 / 27 January 2021 by Stuart Jeffery
Mick Summersgill, our Green Party campaigner for Marden and Yalding, is supporting the campaign to stop the building of the massive chicken farm at Chainhurst (see https://www.welovechainhurst.co.uk/ ). Mick has outlined eight reasons to oppose the development: Additional Traffic and Flooding: Hunton Road at the site entrance and at Green Lane junction near Marden frequently […]
15 December 2020 / 15 December 2020 by Stuart Jeffery
Maidstone Greens have responded to the Borough Council’s consultation on the Local Plan Review, hitting out at the council’s failure to take climate change into consideration. They point to the proposal to build 18,210 homes and state that the building of these would emit over 1 million tonnes of CO2 which would not be in line with Maidstone […]
18 November 2020 / 18 November 2020 by Stuart Jeffery
Presenting to the Public Inquiry into the proposed changes to Stockbury Roundabout today, Maidstone Greens have criticised the plans stating they are incompatible with the Paris Agreement on climate change and that the funds would be better spent on public transport provision along the route. Stuart Jeffery, Maidstone Green Party: “I was pleased to be able […]
10 November 2020 / 10 November 2020 by Stuart Jeffery
Maidstone Greens are calling on the Borough Council to rethink their strategic housing plans in light of the new report from CPRE on brownfield site availability. The Council’s own assessment highlights around 100 hectares available for housing in the Borough, potentially providing ten thousand affordable new homes for those in need. Mike Summersgill, the Green’s […]
21 October 2020 / 21 October 2020 by Stuart Jeffery
Local Greens have slammed Maidstone Borough Council’s Climate Change and Biodiversity Strategy as a strategy for failure and have called for the wholesale resignation of the council. They state that Council’s plan lacks specificity and has targets far lower than needed. They criticise the Council for ‘encouraging’ and ‘supporting’ rather than taking decisive action. Stuart […]
7 October 2020 / 6 October 2020 by Stuart Jeffery
Maidstone Greens have criticised lacklustre proposals to tackle air pollution on Upper Stone Street. The proposals were discussed by Maidstone Borough Council on Wednesday evening and involve removing a tree, planting a hedge and preventing vehicles unloading on the street. Stuart Jeffery, Maidstone Green Party: “We welcome the long awaited focus on Upper Stone Street’s […]
5 October 2020 / 5 October 2020 by Stuart Jeffery
Maidstone Greens have slammed their local council on the lack of action against the continued nuisance pavement parking. Donna Greenan of Maidstone Greens asked the Full Council meeting last week about what they are currently doing to tackle the deep seated problem of pavement parking and was told nothing. The Greens have asked for concerted […]
11 September 2020 / 13 September 2020 by Stuart Jeffery
Maidstone Greens have sent a petition with over a thousand signatures to KCC’s environment chief, Cllr Carey, calling for an end to glyphosate use by the council. The petition comes just a day after the latest WWF report showed that two thirds of the animal population has been lost over the past 50 years. Despite […]