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Catch up with all the latest news from across the county with Bartholomew Hall.
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00:00Hello and welcome to Kent Tonight, live on KMTV.
00:25I'm Bartholomew Hall, here are your top stories on Friday the 25th of July.
00:31Garden of England in Gridlock. Kent's rural residents say roads aren't built for summer
00:36traffic.
00:38One every three months you get an accident.
00:40The doctor will not see you now. Strikes hit Kent Hospitals as Labour faces first action
00:45of administration.
00:46It's actually quite disgusting if they've got an arthritis appointment in the hospital
00:51or anything, that physiotherapy side of things, and they're cancelling it, it's not going
00:56to do anyone good.
00:58And happy birthday to Hilda. Maidstone Care Home resident celebrates her 100th birthday.
01:04Used to have some lovely holidays. We had a caravan and went all over the coast.
01:21Good evening. Collisions, 20 minute delays and damage to buildings are just some of the
01:27consequences villagers in Leeds are telling us of congestion. Residents say their village
01:32near the M20 has to bear the brunt of summer traffic. With Operation Brock in full effect
01:37as well, locals are saying the noise and delays are almost constant.
01:42Finn McDermid went down to find out more.
01:45As the country's main route into Europe, Kent often sees plenty of summer holiday traffic.
01:50But as the motorways fill up, villages alongside them can see heavy congestion that their narrow
01:54roads simply aren't built for.
01:57Leeds, just off the M20, is one of these villages, and has seen years of accidents, damage to buildings
02:03and vehicles getting stuck.
02:04Now Operation Brock is in effect, and even if there aren't lorries coming through, there
02:08are certainly some larger vehicles. And this is quite commonplace. I've been speaking to
02:13members of the public here, and even the landlord of the George Inn, who says that it's just
02:18a constant battle.
02:19It tends to get busier when Brock is on, because everybody gets to the Junction 8 and they cut
02:26back through the village. It's the main road through, really. This is the bypass, this little
02:30road. When, if the road's shut or if there's traffic jams, people tend to stay away from the
02:35area a bit, because they know how busy the road is, so it can affect business, yeah.
02:42And just before I interviewed Jason, there was a collision right outside the pub.
02:46Not very good. That's a regular occurrence. It's probably one every three months you get
02:51an accident.
02:52And officials say Operation Brock being in effect doesn't help.
02:56It does make it worse, but to be quite honest, it's bad anyway. So yeah, you will get people
03:04that don't want to use the A20 because it's bumper to bumper. They want to get to Headcorn,
03:08or they can go to Smart and places like that, and they use this and use the Sutton Road. Then
03:14we have a knock-on effect on the villages around and the local roads where they get gridlocked
03:20and badly destroyed.
03:21Simon Jones, the KMRF lead for border disruption, said the decision to put the Operation Brock barrier
03:27out is made to keep disruption for Kent residents to a minimum and always lead by on the number
03:32of passenger and freight crossings expected at the port of Dover and Eurotunnel. Our work
03:36with central government to identify a better traffic management solution will continue alongside
03:41our around-the-clock monitoring so that everyone can get to where they need to be safely this
03:45summer.
03:46Leeds isn't the only area affected, with the villages of Lennam, Harriotsham and Hollingbourne
03:51also experiencing traffic that their roads simply can't handle. And whether it's the summer
03:56traffic, Operation Brock or Port infrastructure, these rural villages are crying out for some
04:01kind of solution for their streets. Finn McDermid for KMTV in Leeds.
04:06Okay, well, Finn joins us in the studio now. Operation Brock, it's every commuter's best
04:12friend, isn't it, in Kent. How long is it going to be in force for this time?
04:16Well, we aren't quite sure is the bad news. A formal review of whether the barrier needs
04:21to stay out will happen at the first week of August. So we could see it continuing, but
04:27we don't know at this current stage. Earlier this month, they chose to deploy in a 13-mile
04:31stretch on the M20, all to improve the flow of traffic. And that decision was based off
04:36of data that was given by the Port of Dover and Eurotunnel that showed large amounts of
04:40traffic in every July weekend, as well as the fact that KCC-run schools actually finished
04:46this week on the 22nd. As for the future of Brock in general, the government have actually
04:51revealed they're working on a permanent solution to the problem of congestion, and the new
04:54system would use a combination of digital technology and off-road sites to hold HGVs
04:59during disruption. And of course, lots of people wanting to get away for their summer
05:03holidays, maybe this weekend. What's the best advice for them?
05:06Well, the Kent and Medway Resilience Forum said drivers should check their route before
05:11setting off, allow extra time for journeys, and pack the car with essentials including food,
05:15water, and medication.
05:17Well, Finn, thank you very much for bringing us those details.
05:22Two people have been charged following a stabbing at a nightclub in Rochester.
05:2723-year-old Lenny Smith from Chatham and a 17-year-old boy are accused of assaulting a man in his
05:3330s at casino rooms in the town centre. The teenager, who can't be named for legal reasons,
05:39was also charged with inflicting grievous bodily harm and possessing a knife in a public place.
05:44Both were due to appear before Medway Registrates Court earlier today.
05:48The victim, a man in his 30s, was taken to hospital and has since been discharged.
05:55CCTV footage has caught the moment a fly tipper dumped garden furniture on a crossroad in Chatham.
06:02The man can be seen exiting the vehicle before running to the back, unloading the garden furniture
06:07and a wooden crate onto the side of the road. He either runs back to the front of the seat
06:12and drives off. Well, the dumping happened on the White Road estate and the resident who
06:17captured the incident described what the man did as lazy, adding he could have simply taken it to
06:22any of the nearby rubbish tips. Well, the incident's been reported to both Medway Council
06:25and the local authority who have been approached for comment.
06:30Hospitals across Kent have been facing disruption today as resident doctors walked out on a five-day
06:35strike. Previously known as junior doctors, they're now demanding a 29.2% pay rise to adjust what they
06:42call years of wage erosion. Well, this morning our cameras searched for picket lines at Medway
06:48Maritime Hospitals but didn't find a single doctor there. Our reporter Gabriel Morris has been gauging
06:54the level of support for the strike. The government promised last year to turn over a new leaf for NHS
07:00working conditions and pay. But just over a year after Labour's election win, doctors are back on
07:06strike, although nowhere to be seen here. It's the first industrial action of its kind during Starmer's
07:14administration. Now, we don't quite know how many resident doctors have walked out today. Usually, we would get an
07:22idea as a picket line forms outside Medway Maritime's hospital. But it's just gone 7.30 in the morning
07:31and there's no signs of any doctors or any picket line here. We've asked the British Medical Association
07:38several times for an interview to explain why they're calling for a near 30% pay rise. They haven't responded
07:46to our requests. Health Secretary West Streeting says striking doctors have already received a 29%
07:52pay rise over the past three years, with a further 5.5% offer on the table. In Medway,
08:00public opinion remains divided on industrial action. It's actually quite disgusting they're
08:06putting a doctor strike on because people with arthritis, if they've got an arthritis appointment
08:10in the hospital or anything, that physiotherapy side of things, and they're cancelling it,
08:16it's not going to do anyone good. I think the medical profession deserve a good wage.
08:20They do a fantastic job. People haven't got the resources for, you know, like they're piling
08:26all these people in and stuff like that, you know what I mean? So I think it's a bad idea.
08:30I think health should come first. The pay rises I used to get when I was in work was something
08:35of three or four percent, not 20-odd percent.
08:38KMTV's health expert told us this week that maintaining public support during extended strikes
08:46is proving difficult.
08:48Because I think going for that incredibly high amount is losing the public and the last set
08:53of strikes we had last year, actually the public were quite supportive. It is a very difficult
09:00decision whether you're going to take industrial action and certainly in the GP land. But at the
09:04same time, if we don't actually maintain some of the pay parity that we had before,
09:09we're not going to be able to recruit people into being junior doctors.
09:12The message from hospital bosses is business as usual for those coming to A&E.
09:16But during previous strikes, hospitals cancelled more non-urgent appointments.
09:21This time that's not the case and last minute cancellations aren't being ruled out.
09:26If your routine appointment is in general practice, you can assume it's definitely going ahead.
09:31And if it's in hospital, unless you've heard otherwise, you can also assume it's going ahead.
09:36But I do have to say we will not know until the day quite how many doctors will choose not to work.
09:42So I can't promise there won't be adjustments on the day.
09:46The strike action continues until Wednesday with the government holding firm.
09:51Kent could be in for another wave of walkouts.
09:54And is there a possibility it could inspire other public sectors to walk out?
10:01Gabriel Morris for KNTV in Medway.
10:05Well, Gabriel's here now. Gabriel, today's industrial action, is it a sign of more strikes to come?
10:10Well, there's five more days of strike action. But if we compare it to the last set of strike action during
10:17Sunak's administration, they walked out 11 times. That's because they couldn't get around the
10:22negotiating table and come up with something that they were happy with between the government
10:27and the BMA. Now, we know that West Street and the Labour administration are taking a very firm
10:32stance on this and saying there's no more room to budge, although they have given an offer of 5.5%
10:38pay rise this time. But their argument is, as you heard in my report just there,
10:41they've had a pay rise of around about 30% across the last three years. Public support is thinning.
10:48It sits at around about 50%, according to YouGov. And this time around, we haven't seen any other
10:53public sector workers striking. But if the disagreements continue, we could still see strike action.
10:59I've been speaking to the Labour MP for Ashford. A little bit about this strike action. He says he's
11:04disappointed as a former NHS worker that the doctors have chosen to walk out today.
11:09West Street has been clear that doctors are offered, the resident doctors are offered
11:17the highest of pay rise considering to other public sector workers. So it is disappointing to see as a
11:28previous NHS worker that doctors choosing this path when other professions, other professionals are
11:36accepting or not going to strike. Well, Gabriel, thank you for those details. We'll be back
11:43after a very short break, where we'll be talking all things Lionesses and how you can support England
11:47this weekend.
12:17So this is a video today.
12:20Thank you, David.
12:20I'm just going to describe what you're making today.
12:22I think it's all about the public sector.
12:24I think it's a really good book, which I think is a great book you can.
12:26I think it's a great book.
12:28I've never heard of this.
12:29I know in my mind everything.
12:29I think, OK.
12:31Yeah.
12:32I would double-check it, Geme R.
12:34I think more people can answer them.
12:35What about your office?
12:36I think a couple of people are making a social media network.
12:38I think it's you.
12:39I'm really good.
12:41I've never heard of this.
12:43I've never heard of this.
12:44I've never heard of this.
17:25Etta Lee, well, we'll be cheering on the Lionesses
17:27and, of course, Kent's very own Alessia Russo
17:29standing on the end of that picture there this Sunday.
17:32And good luck to them.
17:34Now, don't forget, you can keep up to date
17:35with all your latest stories across the county
17:37by logging on to our website.
17:39It's kmtv.co.uk.
17:41There you can find all of our reports,
17:43including this one about a wheelie good sport
17:45coming to Canterbury.
17:55The Canterbury Trial Park is hosting
18:09this year's Moped Mayhem Championships.
18:11And despite the thunderstorms and gloomy weather,
18:14racers drove for more than four hours.
18:17So Moped Mayhem has been running since 1980-ish.
18:21So it's been a long-standing race series or event series
18:26with five different classes of bikes,
18:30teams of riders up to six within each team.
18:34And we run all over the country, really.
18:37Race today was really good.
18:38Track conditions were hard because it was quite muddy.
18:41All racers had a great time, including myself.
18:45So I went out there and had a few laps.
18:47Might have done a few more than a few laps, but yeah.
18:49So yeah, it all went really, really well today.
18:53And I think everyone's gone home smiling.
18:56That's the most important bit.
18:58I've always been involved in motorbikes.
19:01I gained that from my brother,
19:04who was the sidecar team mechanic.
19:08Yeah, I love it.
19:10Everything was involved with two wheels.
19:12That's me.
19:13The owner of the venue says that the park
19:15is very important to Kent
19:16and that one of its main aims is to keep riders off the streets
19:19and out of trouble.
19:20I started this about a year ago.
19:23There was nowhere for anyone locally to ride.
19:26Trying to get kids and adults as well off the streets
19:29and riding in parks
19:30and just give them somewhere safe, managed and marshaled to ride.
19:33We're off-roader bikes.
19:35We're not allowed to ride them anywhere other than private land,
19:40which is very hard to find these days.
19:42So we offer cheap, safe and decent place for people to come and ride, really.
19:49The nearest track's about an hour and a half away, London Way,
19:53and we're the only one sort of this side of Kemp, really.
19:57Obviously, I ride anyway, but not these sort of bikes.
20:01We're on proper motocross bikes, normally.
20:03It's been a good laugh today.
20:04Certainly a good event.
20:05I'd recommend it to anyone that's got time to come either next year
20:09or to their next round, really.
20:14With all the teams taking home at least one trophy,
20:17which were made out of motorbike parts,
20:19it's safe to say everyone went home happy and muddy.
20:22Kai Wei for Kame TV in Canterbury.
20:24And plenty more reports just like that one over on our website.
20:30Now, though, let's take a look at what the weather has in store for the weekend.
20:39This evening, a mixture of cloudy and clear skies across the board
20:42with highs of 19 in Dartford and Medway.
20:45Into tomorrow morning, mainly cloudy skies,
20:47but the sun will be shining down in Dover with highs of 21 degrees, low winds.
20:52And tomorrow afternoon, winds picking up to 8 miles per hour,
20:55highs of 23 degrees in Canterbury.
20:59And as we go towards next week,
21:00and if you're going to be out in any of those beer gardens watching the Euros final,
21:04looks like it's going to be a cloudy one, 23 degrees, highs of 26 on Tuesday.
21:08Now, just in case you missed it, just before we came on air this morning,
21:19we had another lively episode of the Kent Politics Show.
21:22It's the show that gets politicians talking across Kent.
21:25Tonight, one of our topics was the cost of living crisis
21:28and what more local authorities can be doing to help.
21:31Here's a clip from this evening's show.
21:32When we win the general election, we're going to ensure that when we win,
21:38when we're going to start the tax threshold of £20,000,
21:40that will immediately put pennies and pounds into people's pockets.
21:43When we can make tax breaks for families and whatnot, we will do that also.
21:47You know, right now, people are struggling.
21:48You know, I went to the other day,
21:51organised by 12 Barrow Council on Fairness,
21:53you know, but an event for charities to come together,
21:55for members of public to come in at the Sheppey Gateway.
21:57And it's very clear from what the conversations I had
21:59that these local charities are inundated with people,
22:03whether it's to be food or other services they need to be provided for.
22:05So people are really, really struggling right now.
22:08It's our job, as not only as local authority,
22:10but to also hold a government account to ensure that people are protected.
22:13That's why I'm very worried about the idea of taxes going up,
22:16additional £40 billion come the autumn budget.
22:18So it's very scary times.
22:20You know, we have to support people where we can,
22:21and that, I believe, will only come from a reformed UK government.
22:24Do you want to quickly come in?
22:28You're in charge at the moment, KCC.
22:30You've got the budget there.
22:31You can spend it.
22:32You're identifying all this money that's being wasted.
22:35Spend it on things like reducing school bus passes,
22:37bring back community wardens,
22:39put it into community groups and charities
22:42that help people with food banks.
22:44That's what you can do.
22:45And you can watch the full episode of the Kemp Politics Show
22:49shortly after this programme comes off air this evening,
22:51or go up to our website kmtv.co.uk to watch it back on demand.
22:56Now, though, a care home resident in Maidstone
22:59has just celebrated her 100th anniversary.
23:02Hilda Howes was joined by her family and friends
23:05at Lifestyles Maplewood Court to celebrate the massive milestone.
23:09She even had the honour of receiving a birthday card from the King
23:12and a visit from television star Dr Karl Kennedy,
23:15known for his role in Neighbours.
23:17Neighbours.
23:18Well, our community reporter Henry Luck went down to Maidstone
23:20to tell us more about the celebrations.
23:23Reaching the age of 100 isn't easy,
23:26but one woman in Maidstone has managed to do it.
23:30Hilda Howes was surrounded by her friends and family
23:33to celebrate this incredible occasion,
23:36with even the King sending his regards
23:39with a customary birthday card,
23:42adding to her collection of over 100.
23:45It's my daughter and my son both here
23:50and lots of arms
23:52and all their children.
23:58It's been a wonderful day.
24:00It's quite an amazing feat.
24:01She's the fourth one of six in her family to reach 100.
24:07Her sister died recently and she was 103.
24:12So they're a really quite incredible family,
24:16long livers,
24:17and it was no surprise to me that she made 100.
24:20I'm sure she's going to make 101
24:22and possibly 102.
24:24Speaking to the birthday woman herself,
24:26she talked about some of her fondest memories
24:29through her incredibly long life.
24:32We used to have some lovely holidays.
24:35We had a caravan and went all over the coast
24:39and walked through the countryside in Spain
24:48and across there.
24:51And what else?
24:54Happy cruises.
24:55Cruises, yes, we had some cruises as well.
24:59When it got too young to go by car,
25:05we had some good holidays,
25:07very good holidays.
25:11But the party was just getting started
25:14as Lifestyles Maplewood Court
25:17hosted a second one
25:19so other residents could celebrate Hilda's milestone.
25:22Hilda even had a surprise visit
25:25from TV star Dr. Kyle Kennedy,
25:29known for performing in the hit show Neighbours,
25:32which proved to be the icing on the cake
25:35for this amazing celebration.
25:37So happy birthday to Hilda.
25:39One of her top tips for reaching 100
25:43is to make sure that you and your family are happy.
25:47Henry Luck became TV in Maidstone.
25:53Well, from 100 years of life to just a couple of months.
25:58Before we go, Kent Wildlife Park,
26:00Port Liam has announced the arrival of two Morton Lynx cubs.
26:04Born to Aria and Levis back in May,
26:06the first cub emerged mid-June.
26:08Staff thought there was only one,
26:10but at the start of this month,
26:12a second cub appeared too.
26:14What a lovely sight that is.
26:16After their first health check,
26:17it's been confirmed that we've been gifted
26:19here in the county with a new boy and a new girl.
26:22Port Liam said that they are incredibly proud
26:24of the Lynx family,
26:25adding that this is a huge moment
26:27for their conservation efforts.
26:29What a very, very cute sight.
26:31Well, you've been watching Kent Tonight live here on KMTV.
26:34Plenty more news made just for Kent throughout the evening.
26:36We'll have our late bulletin, as always, at 8 o'clock.
26:39Otherwise, we'll see you next Monday
26:41for another Kent Tonight.
26:42Bye-bye.
26:47We'll see you next Monday.
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