Change is in our Grasp

My New Year Greeting this year was: May 2023 bring you all you want, and that May 2023 brings Folkestone and Hythe the change we need.

Seemed fair at the time, and still does now.

Now we’ll find out if we can get that change. And it is in our grasp.

Its perfectly possible that the Conservatives will no longer be able to lead the District Council after May. They can be beaten. Every vote for the Lib Dem team is for a new, progressive Council leadership to replace them.

A progressive Council leadership that would Save Princes Parade.

I’ve worked over the last 4 years in Council to stop the development of Princes Parade. I’ve moved a Council motion to stop it. I’ve proposed budget amendments 4 years running to remove the funding. And now the project is stalled. All the risk we’ve warned about for years has made the development unaffordable. We have a unique, and final, chance in May to finally Save Prince Parade.

A Council that would change the system to listen to all Councillors, not just a select few on Cabinet. A Council that is clearly listening to local people, week in, week out. A Council that responds. We might not always be able to agree with every resident. We can’t. But we can engage.

A Council that delivers on a pledge to build many more council homes for our area.

Folkestone & Hythe committed to building 1,000 Council homes over the next ten years. That’s fine, but there is no plan for delivering on that promise. We’d build both the plan, and the houses.

A Council that delivers on its Green aspirations. The Council allocated £5m to green projects a few years ago. But much remains in the bank. The money needs to be put to work - now. It should be generating cheap power. Making people’s homes warmer. Cheaper to heat. Reducing the need for expensive to run cars through better public and sustainable transport options. Being green is crucial for our environment. But it is also saves people, and the Council, money. We should be about helping people to save money in times like these.

Equally, we need more homes, and affordable homes, to rent and buy in the district. But those homes need to be the most environmentally friendly they can be, and come with the improvement in services that we would need to see to support them. Schools. GP places. Jobs. Sewage treatment. Roads, footpaths and cycleways. Green spaces, play areas and meeting places.

A Council that would fix a budget that is currently propped up by spending savings from previous years. The last two years running the Council has claimed they have a balanced budget. They do not. They have a budget funded from spending previous year’s savings. That’s not balanced. And it cannot last forever.

It's for the voters to decide. But we’re looking forward to this election more than we have for years. It’s time for change.