Life expectancy in the U.K. is slowing down. The latest official figures show that between 2015 and 2017 life expectancy at birth remained at 79.2 years for men and 82.9 years for women, the first time that there was no improvement whatsoever from the previous data. This morning I was interviewed on BBC Radio Kent alongside […]
Category: News
Striking NHS staff in Margate highlight privatisation threat
NHS estates staff at Margate’s QEQM Hospital have completed five days of industrial action over plans to transfer their jobs to a new subsidiary. Such a strike by NHS staff is a rarity. Picket lines were in place for five days from September 24 in Margate and Kent and Canterbury Hospital, plus William Harvey in […]
Will a holiday homes tax benefit or damage Thanet?
A proposed policy which increases the council tax on second homes used as holiday homes will bring benefits to those in Thanet currently without a home. The Labour Party has rightly employed some radical thinking to tackle our housing crisis head on. £560m could be raised based on the number of second homes in England. […]
Stroke Unit Decision – Tories should be ashamed
The decision to close the stroke unit at QEQM in Margate in favour of three HASUs (Hyper Acute Stroke Units) sited in Dartford, Maidstone and Ashford is a slap in the face for Thanet residents. This is an undemocratic decision as the CCG (Clinical Commissioning Group) are not listening to the concerns of many thousands […]
District & County Council Report, August 2018
I hope everyone has had the opportunity to enjoy some of the fantastic weather we have had in Ramsgate. I’ve been pleased to share some of the summer break with my grandchildren, who are growing up fast. It’s such a joy to be able to use Ramsgate Main Sands. There are also many fabulous local […]
Crossrail to Thanet Parkway – integrated planning required
The announcement this week that Crossrail will now not open for another year will be a major blow for Sadiq Khan. His policy has been to freeze Transport For London (TFL) prices on trains, tubes, buses and trams in the capital. However, 150 year old infrastructure needs considerable investment and, with ridership on TFL decreasing, […]
Fighting Farage round three?
Oh dear. Might nasty Nigel Farage be heading back to Thanet? Writing in the Daily Telegraph on 17th August, the former leader of UKIP and Parliamentary Candidate for South Thanet in 2005 and 2015 said “I’m back”. Although his piece was very much in relation to the disastrous Conservative government BREXIT negotiations, this is very […]
Successful Summer Kitchen to continue
The Summer Kitchen has been a fantastic project to be involved in over recent months. I take my hat off to Sharon Goodyer who heads up Thanet’s community kitchen scheme. She was explaining her plans for providing affordable meals to Thanet families to me over two years ago. I thought then what a good idea, […]
Our Kitchen serves up goodness in Thanet
I first heard Sharon Goodyer talking about this “big plan” for Our Kitchen a couple of years ago. I thought it was a great ambition but wondered if she could succeed. It was daunting. Well, I didn’t know Sharon then as well as I know her now! She is a force of nature. Sharon has […]
Kent wheelchair users greatly disadvantaged by Millbrook Healthcare
The plight of wheelchair users came before Kent County Council Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee (HOSC) meeting on Friday 20th July. As the County Councillor for Ramsgate I was absolutely incensed by the abject failure of the private company, Millbrook Healthcare to deliver a much needed wheelchair provision contact. I am equally angry at the […]