Co-operative Fortnight starts today (20 June 2015).  Go and do something co-operatively.

Faversham and Mid Kent CLP meeting this Friday 7.30 at the DL Centre

Leadship and Deputy Leadership Hustings

Leadership Hustings

The only hustings for the Leadership and Deputy Leadership that are planned to take place in Kent will happen on Wednesday 15 July 2015.  The venue will be Mid Kent College in Medway Road Gillingham ME7 1FN starting with light refreshments from 6.30 pm.

Food Banks

Here's Ed Miliband asking David Cameron what he plans to do about it: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-20784426

Keep Our Street Lights on ?

Ashley Wise from Sittingbourne & Sheppey Labour Party has recently started up this campaign regarding street lighting. At the moment, to save money. the KCC are turning off street lighting between midnight and 5 am. On the face of it, that may sound sensible, but it can cause problems. Read what Ashley has to say and if you agree please sign the petition 

ePetition - Keep Kent's streetlights on

» Tory KCC must not turn our street lights off.

The Labour Party in Kent knows, as we develop our manifesto for the Kent County Council elections next May, that spending will have to be reduced for certain services. However I believe that turning of street lights across the county between the hours of midnight and 5am to save money is unacceptable.

The Conservative Cabinet reported that it was ‘pleased’ people who took part in the consultation on the budget proposals (422 people out of 1.2million) saw turning off street lighting was the most acceptable way to save money. The savings would be around £600k – not an insignificant sum but compared to what the council wants to save, it is not a significant amount.

Tory-run KCC wants to turn our street lights off between midnight and 5am

The consultation also revealed strong concerns about the impact turning street lights off would have on community safety and levels of crime. I share these concerns and they should take priority over potential savings.

We all know the effect losing the light from one street light has to our streets when a bulb is awaiting replacement – imagine that for streetlights all across the county at the times when we need it most; walking back from the train station, your local pub or from work. I certainly would not feel anywhere near as safe walking any distance in such levels of darkness and these concerns have come up time and time again when discussing this issue on the doorstep with residents in Swale East – I am sure their concerns will be shared across the county.

Warwickshire County Council took the decision to turn their street lights off between the hours of midnight and 5:30am – after just one week tragically an eighteen year old student was killed after a collision with a taxi whilst crossing the road. Taxi drivers are calling for the council to reverse their decision as they are reporting such instances are due to their peripheral vision being affected by the lack of light.

Kent County Council must not risk the safety of our residents by turning the street lights off; the relatively small savings are far outweighed by the effects turning street lights off would have on community safety.

The e-petition  ePetition - Keep Kent's streetlights on, we would appreciate if you could sign it to put pressure on KCC to no long consider turning our street lighting off. 

 By Ashley Wise, Sittingbourne & Sheppey Labour Party 

Youth Officer and candidate for Swale East. 

Ashley Wise, Sittingbourne & Sheppey Labour Youth Officer & Labour Candidate for Swale East

Police and Crime Commissioner 15th November 2012

http://www.harrietyeo.com/

Harriet's Pledges

My 5 Pledges

No privatisation of Kent Police

This is quite simple, the Tory founder of the police Robert Peel thought that policing was too important to be handed over to private profit driven operations, so do I! I have many years of a proven track record of fighting privatization – ask Tony Blair!

Victims before perpetrators

Yes, criminals need to be rehabilitated but victims need to feel that criminals have been punished for the injury against them. There has to be a way of serving both sides but victims must come first and organisations such as Victim Support must be given the help that they need to support victims of crime.

Support Kent Police

I want to support Kent Police to catch the really bad not the nearly bad. Crime is falling in Kent? Well that depends on how you look at crime. Car crime is falling but according to the forces own statistics released 23rd July 2012 robbery and serious sexual offences have risen by over 10% each. In another report highlighted by the BBC 9th August 2012 cannabis farms are proliferating in Kent. Tory members and the independent chair of the police authority have made the figures look good for their benefit, concentrating on car crime but for people whose lives have been blighted by drugs, and ruined by rape – and Kent has no 24/7 rape suite – maybe the crime figures don’t look or feel so good.

Accountability

I will visit every constituency twice a year to speak to all groups, especially those who could become victims of hate crime, the elderly with their lives shadowed by the fear of crime and young people and act as a facilitator between communities and the officers that serve them.

Transparency

Sometimes policing can feel very distant from the people who are policed and reasons and behaviours of the police need to be understood by the communities served by them. We are all in it together and we need to work together and understand each other.

By the way I am ruthless on drugs, I didn’t include that as a pledge as I believe every credible Police and Crime Commissioner candidate must be 100% dedicated to the war on drugs.

Labours Pledges

Stand up for communities against the Tories’ 20 per cent cuts to policing and the loss of over 16,000 police officers.


Keep police on the beat with neighbourhood policing, not hand it over to private companies or leave it only to PCSOs


Back a strong and swift response to antisocial behaviour. Victims should get a response within 24 hours.


Be tough on crime, and tough on the causes of crime. We will work in partnership with police, local people and councils to tackle and prevent crime.


Protect the police from political interference by respecting the independence of the Chief Constable.

Press Release 6th September 2012

Press Release

We (The Maidstone East and Mid Kent Branch of the Labour Party) have announced our prospective candidates for next May’s KCC elections

They are:

Mick Beckwith, for Maidstone Rural North division,

Jim Grogan, for Maidstone Rural East division,

Geoff Harvey for Maidstone South division,

Malcolm McKay for Maidstone South East division,

and Stephen Taylor Maidstone Rural South division.

We are also supporting the candidacy of Harriet Yeo for the Police and Crime Commissioner this November.

If anyone would like to get involved in campaigning with us for any of these elections get in touch now.  This is an opportunity to have an active and positive role in local politics and in your community. Perhaps you could be even standing as a Councillor yourself in the future.

There is an election in Maidstone every year, and campaigning is a great way to meet like-minded people, get a bit of exercise and be a part of something that can make a difference to your local community.

Come and join the fun.

You can find us on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/MSBLP

and Twitter @MEandMKLabour

To find out more information please contact Jim Grogan on  07724954171