In defence of Medway Council

Over the past couple of months, I have had good, valid reason to rant about Medway Council. And have.

From the decisions of the elected councillors to the actions taken by the unelected officers “on their behalf”, those few decisions and actions I disagree with have, in terms of this blog at least, overshadowed the many decisions and actions which I have supported and which have been benificial to Medway.

Take, for example, the demolition of the Sir John Hawkins Flyover. People can, and most likely will, rant and rave about its demolition right up until the day the out-dated eyesore finally ceases to be a blot on the regeneration-craving Chatham High Street. However frustrating the traffic congestion and general disruption has been, and will continue to be until the major regeneration project is completed, the end result will open up the two “ends” of the High Street and create a much more aesthetically-pleasing and agreeable High Street.

At the budget meeting earlier in the month, Cllr Alan Jarrett, the Portfolio Holder for Finance, announced that parking charges in council car parks would be frozen for two years, with no fees during the busy Christmas period. This is a particular relief to motorists, including myself, not looking forward to paying an extra 10p from September (as is the usual charge increase). This not withstanding, in my opinion charges are still way too high. Take, for example, the Riverside car park (the one I use most often). To park there for an hour (even though if I’m there for even half an hour of the chargeable time, as I usually park at about 21:45 or later, I’m doing well) costs 70p. One hour for the car park I used in Solihull whilst in Birmingham was 20p! But I digress…

Finally (although I have not run out of positives for Medway Council, I have run out of energy and the will to stay awake) there is the little matter of investment in Medway’s oldest, and youngest, residents. Two of my friends have now registered for their over-60s bus pass. There is also in place a half-price scheme for schoolchildren who travel on the buses in the mornings. Not to mention the fact that under-16s and over-60s can swim for free.

To think that the noises being made about Medway Council are one-sided is, in reality, nonsense. But, unfortunately, good news makes bad sales revenues and often the positives are sidelined to a few lines on the inside pages and the negatives are headlined on the front page.

It appears, having browsed through my previous articles, that even I am guilty on focusing on the mistakes (everyone makes mistakes) and not on the successes. Medway Council is a well-run council and, despite the way some previous posts (and publicly-published letters) may appear, I do continue to support the authority overall and the direction the Conservative administration are taking it in.