Medway Local Plan (Regulation 18, 2024)

First it was disturbing to see the amount of paper forms and booklets at the exhibition. Paper is a toxic commodity, even recycled and vegetable inks.

Second, car travel is not a choice but a necessity for shift workers, personal carers, volunteers who deliver supplies and many others.

Third, whilst buses are plentiful in the town centres, they are infrequent and unreliable at the edges. This won't entice people on to them.

Finally the idea of reinvigorating high streets for shopping is nonsense. Empty shops should be turned back into houses as they were originally.

There was recently an exhibition showing proposals to turn the disused railway in Gillingham into an outdoor leisure area. This would be great for walking and cycling.

Only one issue, if you are going to allow the sale of refreshments, please try to find some way of discouraging disposable takeaway cups and wrappings.

A drinking water point where people can refill their bottles would be good.

The borough has far too many takeaway outlets. Apart from dead-end jobs, the vast quantities of litter make it look ugly and not worth taking care of.

Children should be taught in schools from a young age against littering and graffiti. A lot of adults need it too.

I recently visited a park in Canterbury where a class of children were litter picking.

Brownfield sites may be less attractive to developers, but we have lost too many trees already. New ones planted will take decades to replace the benefits of the felled mature ones. How about making it conditional that a good proportion of each development contract must include brownfield, with the tainted soil deep-buried, refilled and trees on top?

First it was disturbing to see the amount of paper forms and booklets at the exhibition. Paper is a toxic commodity, even recycled and vegetable inks.

Second, car travel is not a choice but a necessity for shift workers, personal carers, volunteers who deliver supplies and many others.

Third, whilst buses are plentiful in the town centres, they are infrequent and unreliable at the edges. This won't entice people on to them.

Finally the idea of reinvigorating high streets for shopping is nonsense. Empty shops should be turned back into houses as they were originally.