- 9 minutes ago
Catch up with all the latest political news across the county, with Finn Macdiarmid, joined by Cllr Maxine Fothergill of the new Restore Britain party, and Cllr Harry Rayner, Conservative group leader at KCC.
In this episode, we discussed the Restore Britain faction at Kent County Council, and accessibility across the county.
In this episode, we discussed the Restore Britain faction at Kent County Council, and accessibility across the county.
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TVTranscript
00:22Hello and welcome to the Kent Politics Show here on KMTV, the show that gets Kent's councillors
00:27talking. I'm Finn McDermid. Now, seven former Reform UK councillors here at Kent County
00:33Council have joined a new party, Restore Britain. The party was launched last week by independent
00:39MP for Great Yarmouth, Rupert Lowe. As six of these seven councillors have been expelled
00:43from reform over the past year, is Restore more different from reform than the similar
00:47name might suggest? Well, to answer this, I'm joined now by the new Restore councillor,
00:52Maxine Fothergill, as well as the leader of the Conservative group at Kent County Council,
00:59Harry Rayner. Thank you both so much for joining me. Thank you. First of all, we'll start with
01:03you, Maxine. Before we get into the intricacies of reform versus Restore, tell us why you chose
01:09to join the new group. I was invited to join, actually. I had a message come through and
01:17to be totally honest with you, I was really excited about it. For me, Restore Britain actually
01:23really does align with my own values. I see. Now, reform and restore, they sound pretty similar
01:30in concept. Their policies also feel quite similar too. Can you explain some of the differences between
01:34the two groups for our audience at home? I think for us locally, and you know, I'm a local
01:41politician, I'm not a national politician. But for us locally, it's very similar. It's, for me,
01:47as a local member, it's about making sure that I'm looking after my residents in Seven Oaks,
01:53rural northeast. So nothing really changes, to be totally honest with you. My priorities are to
01:58those people that actually voted me in. And so, you know, for the national politics, that's something
02:06that I'm not actually involved in. But locally, it's very much about looking after my own residents
02:12and nothing really changes. I see. So in terms of people voting for you, why should they pick
02:19Restore over reform if, as you say, they're quite similar in concept? I think because our values are
02:26stronger. We are a party which is a party that believes in people first, our own people, British
02:32people first, that we are, we've got some real core values in looking after local businesses.
02:39And for me, I've been in business as a business owner for the past 24 years. So looking after
02:46small business, which represents what, 99, over 99% of this country, is really important. And I love
02:53those core values, the fact that I've got a party that really does care about small business,
02:58because that affects me as well as being a local councillor.
03:02I see. So your policies are small business and making sure your voter base are, you represent
03:07their interests. Are there anything else more specific that people can really align with Restore?
03:12Yes, I think that having pride in Britain, having that sense of we've got some, a party that's
03:20behind us that really does care about us, about British people, it's British people first. And I
03:28think that that to me actually really does align with my very own values of feeling proud, feeling
03:34proud to be British, feeling proud to actually represent the people that put me in place and
03:40voted for me. I've been a councillor now for 14 years. And for me, I feel that this Restore Britain
03:49is the right party for me. And I really do feel very much at home.
03:53So do other parties not put Britain first, in your view? Because is that a unique thing to have?
03:59No, no. No, I'm sure most parties do actually put their, you know, people first. But as I say,
04:05not a lot has actually changed in the fact that I got voted in on a ticket to actually look
04:12after
04:12those residents of Sevenoaks Rural North East. And that's exactly what I'm doing.
04:17I see. Harry, I'll come to you now. A large criticism of the left is its many factions. Now,
04:22reform has already taken many previously Conservative members here in Kent, and also
04:26nationally with some MPs defecting. Do you think there's a worry here that Restore poses a risk of
04:31fracturing the right?
04:33Not really. I don't see Restore as anything of significance. It's a splinter off the current
04:43reform arrangements at KCC. At the moment, it's difficult to see what the impact is. Currently,
04:51Maxine's a prospective leader of the group. And in the event that she is so elected, then I look forward
05:00to cooperating with her as part of the opposition at KCC.
05:04I see. You say they're not a significance at this moment, but the Conservative Party is no longer
05:10the second largest opposition in KCC. Restore has taken that title. So is this a sign that the
05:16Conservative group might be losing their influence? Talk to me about that.
05:19Oh, not at all. I wouldn't be at all surprised to see increased numbers in the Conservative group in
05:25the weeks and months ahead. I see. Why is that?
05:29Why? We're actively recruiting. There's likely to be a by-election upcoming in Kent, and I wouldn't
05:38be at all surprised if the Conservatives were to win that.
05:41I see. And Councillor Bill Barrett, to quote him for a second, he's ex-Reform and he's a former leader
05:46of the Independent Reformers group. He told the Independent he wouldn't join Restore because it
05:50is, and I quote, too right-wing for me. So if an ex-Reformer councillor is saying a new group
05:55is too right-wing, what do you make of that for the future of right-wing politics? Are we going
06:00further and further down one way rather than another?
06:03Well, that's Bill Barrett's view. And I respect Bill Barrett. I think he's entitled to his view
06:10on the matter, and it's a matter for those who have been approached to see whether they
06:15wish to join the new party, and they come to their own conclusions.
06:21I see. Maxine, what do you make of Bill's quote there?
06:25I think I wouldn't want to be speaking for other people, to be totally honest with you.
06:32Bill, it's totally up to everybody to choose which party they wish to align with, and Bill's
06:39made that decision, and I totally respect his decision. You know, I wouldn't want to
06:44be trying to coerce or anything, and I do respect what Bill's actually decided to do at this
06:50point in time.
06:51I see. Maxine, would you be able to set a bit of the record straight for our viewers at
06:56home? Why were you expelled from reform?
06:59Initially, I was expelled for alleged leaking of a video, which I would never do. I'm a very
07:08loyal person, 14 years in politics. There's no way I'd ever do things like that. And then
07:15something came up over an alleged breach of not disclosing something within vetting. It's
07:24actually quite amazing, because I'd been vetted three times in the last year, so to actually
07:29say something like that was absolutely, totally wrong. And I have taken opinion, I'll be honest
07:35with you, and my barrister's opinion is very much that they were in the wrong. But the, I'll be
07:42honest, the remedy was restoration, and I don't want restoration. So, and I feel very happy in the
07:50choices that I've made.
07:51I see. So, if you were expelled from Reform UK, how can residents in Sevenoaks and across Kent
07:56have faith that you have their best interests at heart?
08:00I look after my four parish councils, and they know me as me. They know that I look after my
08:09residents
08:10that voted for me, and it doesn't matter what colour the shirt or the tie is. As far as they're
08:17concerned, they know that I'm congruent, that I work hard, and I will always look after their interest.
08:23And at the end of the day, it's not about me. It's about the people, the people that actually put
08:28us in place. And that's our duty as councillors, to make sure that we do the best that we can
08:33for them.
08:34I see. Now, when launching the party, Lowe said on immigrants that millions will have to go.
08:40This is a harder stance, arguably, than reforms. And, of course, the party is most known for its
08:45hard views on anti-immigration. You already mentioned earlier about how it's Britain first.
08:50Is this something you align with, Maxine?
08:52I do align with Britain first. At the end of the day, we have seen thousands of undocumented
08:59males coming into our country. We have seen some terrible cases of rape and women being abused.
09:09And it concerns me. I'm a mum and a grandmother, and I used to feel safe on our streets.
09:15I've run my business now for 24 years in Gravesend, and I used to sit in my office until late
09:22at night.
09:23I will not do that anymore. And when I go up to London, I might go to London to meetings.
09:28I feel nervous all the time. It's not the country that I remember growing up. I don't think our roads
09:37and our streets are safe anymore. And for me, if we can actually get some, you know, the feeling
09:45of safety, and women can feel safe, I think that's so important.
09:49I see. But at the level of politics that you operate at, this isn't really an issue you can deal
09:54with.
09:54This is more of a national governmental issue, is an argument people would make.
09:57What would you say to that?
09:58Well, we have a fantastic group in a group called the Pink Ladies, and they have been campaigning heavily.
10:07You've probably heard of them. I believe there's a big rally coming up in April, and I will be supporting
10:14them.
10:14I will be there. We will be outside the Home Office. It's important that people feel safe in our country.
10:22And although I can't change the national politics, I'm a local politician, I absolutely support the Pink Ladies
10:29and their mission to make sure that women and children feel safe in our country.
10:36Harry, as a man, is this something you support? Some critics of the Pink Ladies have said that they have
10:41an anti-trans rhetoric.
10:42Is this something you support?
10:44I'm certainly not anti-trans in any way.
10:48The agenda, as far as I'm concerned, is their agenda. What the Pink Ladies do is a matter for them.
10:55I don't have any particular views. What I would say is I'm a father of two daughters,
11:00and I seek to ensure that women have, at the very least, equal chances in life and everything that they
11:10set out to do.
11:12I see. We haven't got much time left, so I think we might have to call it there.
11:19Thank you so much for joining me, but we will be back after a short break.
11:23We'll see you in just a few minutes, where we'll be discussing a report into Faversham
11:28and how a lot of Kent's historic towns have similar issues in terms of accessibility,
11:32whether it be cobblestone streets or narrow pavements.
11:36So the question is, do we do enough for disabled residents here in Kent?
11:40Whether it's more funding for dropped pavements or exactly what the Council is doing to rectify this,
11:46we'll hear more about that after this short break. See you in a few minutes.
15:04Welcome back to the Kent Politics Show on KMTV. I'm Finn McDermid, and we're still discussing reform and its effect
15:11on local politics.
15:13I still am joined by Harry Rayner and Maxine Fothergill.
15:16So, Harry, I'll come to you first. With reform splitting the far right, and with the situation we're currently in,
15:24where members are defecting and the Conservatives are no longer the second biggest opposition,
15:29how has this been allowed to happen?
15:30Oh, really, both inexperience and incompetence on the part of the reform administration,
15:36the leadership of the reform administration.
15:39They've been really heavy-handed with their membership.
15:41It's quite clear, and Maxine can say more on that than I will,
15:45but it's quite clear that as a group leader, you don't voluntarily expel people and reduce your majority and leave
15:54them out in the cold.
15:55It's an open invitation to someone else to come in, scoop them up, put their arm around their shoulder.
16:01That's what the administration should have done, should have brought them back into the fold,
16:06having had a period out, and they haven't done so.
16:10And the toxic atmosphere at KCC, arising from the poor leadership at present,
16:17puts them in a position that Restore have been able to come in and scoop up the former reform expelliates.
16:29I see. I do have to say that reform aren't here to defend themselves, so there is that.
16:34But in defence of them, isn't it reasonable within politics to attempt to remove or expel party members
16:39who they see as not following party lines?
16:41I wouldn't say that it's not reasonable, but what you have to ask yourself is,
16:46would someone who was more politically astute, was more experienced as a leader,
16:52have not taken that hard line and pulses of the world?
16:57They weren't just let go in one hit.
17:00They were pulses of the situation, and in the way that they were released and expelled.
17:06And in my view, it's down to incompetence, it's down to inexperience on the path of reform.
17:12And surely you would have invited reform on here.
17:16The very fact that they're not here, having been invited,
17:20shows you the degree of arrogance that they have
17:23in the way that they conduct themselves at King County Council.
17:26I see. As you mentioned there, they were invited on the show but declined to join.
17:30Maxine, would you like to weigh on this?
17:32What's your view? Obviously, you've got personal experience of this.
17:34Yes, I have. I mean, I come from a background where I was experienced.
17:38This is my 14th year in local politics.
17:41Local politics is very different to the way that reform, in my opinion, are being run.
17:48We are all elected ourselves as individuals.
17:53So we all have that right to have a seat around the table.
17:57But the way that it's being driven at the moment, and it has been from day one,
18:02is that councillors are not being brought along with us, so to speak.
18:08So what happened from day one is that you had three people that were elected
18:14that had no experience in local politics whatsoever.
18:18And then when issues started to arise, instead of dealing with them locally,
18:23everything was dealt with via the main party, head office,
18:27who shouldn't have anything to do with what's going on locally.
18:31And this was certainly a criticism that all the other parties had actually said from day one.
18:38But instead of actually dealing with anything,
18:40they then made a feeble excuse that the whip was very busy
18:46because he was working in head office.
18:47So they then proceeded to put in two further deputy whips,
18:51once again with no experience whatsoever.
18:54So what you've got is a team of people that are trying to run it
18:58like a corporate organisation rather than respected people
19:02that have been voted in on their own ticket.
19:05And that's, I believe, where things have gone drastically wrong from day one.
19:09I see.
19:10You mentioned about experience of local councillors.
19:14You are leading this current party, if I'm not mistaken.
19:18Do you have – sorry, I think I might have gotten that wrong,
19:21I've been told in my ear – but provisionally.
19:26Tell me, do you have experience of leading a council?
19:29I was a deputy leader of the independence at Seven Oaks
19:32when I was a councillor in Seven Oaks.
19:36But I am – I'm used to leading because I run a business.
19:40So for 24 years I've been chief cook, butter washer, personnel,
19:46everything to a business.
19:48And I'm a trainer as well.
19:50So I've been a trainer and mentor for the past 22 years,
19:53training up and down all over the country.
19:55So I'm very used to actually looking after and valuing people.
20:00Because at the end of the day, people aren't just a commodity,
20:04they're an asset.
20:05And you have to look after people.
20:07And the more that you look after people and you care for people,
20:10the more that they will come with you.
20:11And I think in reform what's happened is this management by fear
20:16rather than management by bringing people together
20:19and actually having a supportive cohort of people
20:23that actually care and care for what they do
20:26and people that care for each other
20:28as well as their residents that they're representing.
20:31I see.
20:32If they were here, I'm sure they would have lots of say on the matter.
20:34But they're not.
20:35Let's move on to our next topic
20:37where we're going to talk about disability access.
20:41So for those who use wheelchairs or accessibility scooters,
20:44it's rarely as easy as simply popping to the shops.
20:47Now, our county is home to a wealth of attractions,
20:50heritage sites and historic cobbled towns.
20:52But how accessible is it really?
20:54And does more need to be done to accommodate those with mobility needs?
20:57Our reporter Kristen Hawthorne recently went to Faversham to meet activist Sarah Jane.
21:02I did it, but it's not suitable.
21:06Sarah Jane lives in Faversham and uses a mobility scooter.
21:10She recently travelled to London as part of a national challenge
21:13organised by the Spinal Injuries Association
21:16to highlight barriers disabled people face when travelling.
21:19Well, I think I've managed to sort out my journey.
21:23Not easy.
21:25One of the most tricky bits was I'd ring different stations
21:28to find out if the lift was working.
21:31Because obviously without the lift, I couldn't do it.
21:34And they'd say, oh yes, it's working today,
21:38but it wasn't working yesterday.
21:40We can't guarantee it.
21:42More than one station said that to me.
21:44The main problem on the train
21:47was the bit where you get on,
21:49and I think it's called a vestibule,
21:52have got two big poles in the middle.
21:56In my opinion,
21:58they need to have one of those vestibules,
22:01especially for wheelchairs and scooters,
22:04where there aren't two great poles in the middle.
22:07Despite these difficulties,
22:08she says the trip itself went well,
22:11but wants to raise awareness
22:12of what everyday journeys are like closer to home.
22:15For a lot of people,
22:16going to get a train or going to get coffee
22:18can be quite easy.
22:19But for people who need to use a wheelchair or a scooter,
22:22Sarah Jane says that those journeys
22:23require a lot of forward planning
22:25and can be quite scary.
22:27Coming up here,
22:28as you saw,
22:29the cobbles,
22:30a lot of cobbles,
22:31which aren't helpful.
22:34This is a better scooter than the one I had before.
22:37It's a bit more sturdy,
22:38so it can manage the cobbles,
22:40but I don't like it.
22:41So I'm always worried I'm going to tip over.
22:44There's not many shops I can get into.
22:47She says uneven pavements,
22:49narrow routes and blocked, dropped curbs
22:52can make navigating parts of the town difficult
22:54and sometimes unsafe.
22:56That bit is a bit raised before the glass bit
22:59and I was coming past you
23:01and it ticked me up that way.
23:03It probably didn't,
23:04but it felt as if it was.
23:06That's when I get nervous.
23:09I didn't like that.
23:10Charles Gibson of Faversham Town Council
23:13said the authority is taking steps
23:15to improve accessibility across the town.
23:18He said,
23:19Faversham Town Council is working
23:21to make the town more accessible
23:22for people walking and wheeling.
23:25A list of new dropped curbs has been drawn up,
23:27pending funding from Kent County Council.
23:30Further plans aim to improve access
23:32to the town centre,
23:33including reducing parking
23:35while safeguarding the town's historic character.
23:38Kent County Council have been approached
23:40for a statement.
23:41Although she spoke positively about Faversham,
23:44Sarah Jane hopes that she will be able
23:45to help improve accessibility,
23:47not just for her,
23:48but for others across Kent
23:50facing similar challenges.
23:52Kristen Hawthorne, KMTV, in Faversham.
23:57Now, obviously, Kristen's package there
23:59was talking about Faversham specifically,
24:00but a cobbled street and a narrow pavement
24:02is no stranger to other parts of the county,
24:05such as Sevenoapish or Westmalling,
24:06just to name a couple there.
24:08Do you think we do enough
24:09for our disabled residents in our county?
24:11I'll come to you first, Harry.
24:12Sure.
24:13Clearly not.
24:14And one of the best things
24:16that we could do as a county council
24:18is to acquire the power
24:22from central government
24:24to prevent cars parking on pavements.
24:27For me, that's the number one job
24:29that we need to crack.
24:31It would help not just wheelchair users,
24:34but also mothers with buggies and prams
24:37and using similar wheeled devices.
24:41There's no question
24:43that that would be really advantageous.
24:45And it's, in fact,
24:46in my own division at Hildenborough,
24:48the Harvest Garage,
24:49I've put years of work
24:52into getting double yellow lines
24:54and lots of other administrative arrangements
25:00put in place
25:00just to prevent parking on pavements
25:03opposite the Harvest Garage
25:06because of the impact that it has
25:08on those users
25:09to which I've just made reference.
25:11That's the biggest thing we could do.
25:13Not the only thing,
25:14but as you quite rightly say,
25:16historic towns,
25:18often medieval layouts
25:20with things like cobbled streets
25:22and so forth,
25:23these don't help the situation.
25:24But on the other hand,
25:26there's lots that can be done
25:28within the arrangements permitted
25:31in still preserving
25:34that type of character
25:35in our older towns and villages.
25:37I see.
25:38And as part of the opposition,
25:39what would you say you're doing
25:41to really push reform on this?
25:42Oh, in particular,
25:44to bring the matter to committee,
25:47to the Environment and Transport Committee.
25:49In fact, it's Growth,
25:51Environment and Transport now.
25:53Reform have,
25:54because they couldn't get enough members
25:56to man their committees,
25:58they've reduced the number of committees
26:00and brought growth
26:01into Environment and Transport.
26:02I think it's a backward step,
26:03but we use the committee system
26:06to make sure that it's brought
26:08to the top of the agenda.
26:10And that's one of the ways
26:12that the opposition
26:13go about their business.
26:15I see.
26:16I would have liked to come to you, Maxine,
26:18but unfortunately,
26:18that is about all the time we have.
26:20Thank you both so much
26:21for joining me.
26:23That is, of course,
26:24all the time we have here
26:25on the Kent Politics Show.
26:27Thanks again to our guests
26:29for coming into the studio.
26:30We'll be back soon,
26:31but stay with us,
26:32because Kent Tonight
26:33will be playing just after this,
26:34coming up with all the latest news
26:36from around the county.
26:38So don't go anywhere
26:40and catch that just after this.
26:41Thank you so much for watching
26:42and we'll see you soon.
26:43Goodbye.
26:43Bye-bye.
26:44Bye-bye.
26:45Bye-bye.
26:46Bye-bye.
26:57Bye-bye.
26:59Bye-bye.
26:59Bye-bye.
26:59Bye-bye.
27:00Bye-bye.
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