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00:21Hello and welcome to Kent Tonight live here on KMTV. I'm Finn McDermott and here are your
00:26top stories on Tuesday the 1st of September. Charged by the minute, we look at parking
00:32prices in Folkestone after online outrage. Rugby legend takes on 7k. Sir Kevin Sinfield runs
00:46with Cranbrook residents to raise money for motor neurone disease treatment. It's a huge
00:51thing and that's really where Kevin has been transformational in terms of his fundraising.
00:57And feeling festive yet? Well we find out when people in Rochester start thinking about Christmas.
01:03People are buying everything all year round so they're preparing for Christmas so the
01:09beauty of that is that they can then spend more money over the period.
01:23Now a driver who was travelling at speeds of up to 137 mph just seconds before a crash where
01:31a woman died and another was seriously injured has been told to expect a significant prison
01:37sentence. Luciano Spirito appeared at Maidstone Crown Court where he admitted to causing the
01:44death of 19-year-old Darcy Tomset by dangerous driving in a crash on the A20 near Farningham.
01:49Our reporter Maisie Walker joins me now to tell us a little bit more about this case. So Maisie
01:55tell us a bit about what happened originally. Well Luciano Spirito has admitted to causing the death
02:01of Darcy Tomset who was just 19 years old at the time at Maidstone Crown Court and this occurred
02:07three years ago in 2023 at around 10.50pm. The court heard that Spirito was driving at speeds of up
02:16to
02:16137 mph just seconds before the crash where Darcy died. The four people in Spirito's car were also
02:25taken to hospital after the incident with serious injuries. I see, we can see some pictures there of
02:31Darcy. Tell us a little bit about the court proceedings that happened. Well Spirito pleaded guilty to causing death by
02:39dangerous driving, causing death while uninsured and causing serious injury by dangerous driving too.
02:46Judge Julian Smith told Spirito he should expect a significant prison sentence when he is sentenced in November.
02:54His defence did argue that he was travelling at around 115 miles per hour but accepted that this would actually
03:01make no
03:01difference to the sentence at all. Spirito was granted unconditional bail and given a driving
03:08disqualification until the sentencing which will take place on November 18th. I see obviously this
03:14collision occurred a few years ago. Tell us a bit more about the impact that we're seeing today.
03:18Well Darcy's friends and family later raised thousands for charity in her memory up to
03:248,000 pounds for a charity organisation called Break which is a road safety charity and some of the
03:31things Darcy's family said on the website were that to remember Darcy who was always full of colour
03:37that they asked people to wear something that reflected this for her memory at her funeral which
03:42obviously happened in 2023. They said that their grief has been suffocating and it was the saddest day
03:48in the family's life. I see. Thank you for bringing us the latest. A man has been charged after a
03:55van was
03:55involved in a 15 mile police chase starting in Swanscombe and ending in Bromley. Kent police were called to
04:03a report of a man breaking a window of a van before driving it away over the weekend. Met police
04:09then chased
04:10the vehicle for 15 miles and brought it to a stop by what they call making tactical contact in Bromley.
04:16One police officer sustained an injury to his hand but no other injuries were reported. Police have
04:21confirmed that Barney McGinley has been charged with causing serious injury by driving a vehicle
04:27dangerously, dangerous driving, driving whilst disqualified and no insurance. Parking charges in
04:34Folkestone have risen since May with some people online blaming the increase for fewer visitors over
04:38the bank holiday weekend. While the original post focused on the Lees comments highlighted concerns about
04:44parking across the town. So our reporter Kristen Hawthorne headed to the harbour arm to hear directly
04:50from visitors to the town about the cost of parking and to find out why the charges were introduced not
04:55only at the Lees but at those multiple car parks. Over the bank holiday weekend there was a post in
05:02the Folkestone residence group about parking charges. The post got a lot of engagement amounting more than 400
05:07comments and 600 reactions. Many disagree with the price saying it's simply too expensive and is driving
05:14people away. So I travelled around the area and charges were similar across the town with visitors
05:20and families reportedly heard complaining around the harbour arm.
05:23I mean it's very very dear and it's mainly for people coming down for the day and really they spend
05:34all their
05:34money on the arm here. Especially if you've got like a big family and there's a lot you've got to
05:40spend
05:40out anywhere I don't think parking should be one of your worries do you know what I mean that you've
05:44got to worry
05:44about personally. Well I mean in this day and age where everything's become more expensive if they can keep
05:49parking tickets and charges to a reasonable level I think more people would be willing to accept that.
05:55So we spent £10.80 to park for four hours which I think actually compared to Rochester prices and
06:03London prices isn't too bad. £10 a day something like that would be reasonable for how many hours
06:08obviously if you are here less then it would be more beneficial to put like an hour £1 per hour.
06:14So while I was speaking to residents I parked behind me at the harbour side
06:18which for two hours cost us £5.20 which is about the price of two coffees and this is what
06:24caused
06:24all the outrage on Facebook over the bank holiday weekend. But what is the council's reasoning behind
06:30the price? In regards to the lees which was referenced in the original post Folkestone and Hyde
06:37District Council say the parking charges were introduced after complaints and petitions from residents
06:42about obstructive and long-stay parking on the lees. They say the charges have increased the turnover of
06:47spaces making parking more available during busy periods. Residents can apply for a £20 three
06:53month permit allowing up to three hours of free parking each day. The seasonal charges only apply
06:59between 11am and 5pm from April to September. But while these charges may be helping more cars find a
07:07space they're also giving people plenty to talk about. Kristen Hawthorne for KMTV Folkestone.
07:14Rugby legend Sir Kevin Sinfield joined in with a community to raise money for motor neuron disease
07:20treatment. The former rugby player ran seven kilometres with Cranbrook residents in a charity
07:25fun run. The money went towards Kevin's charity called 7 in 7 which was set up in memory of a
07:31friend
07:31who died from the disease. Henry Luck our community reporter has the story.
07:39And there are residents of Cranbrook are running 7k with sporting legend Sir Kevin Sinfield to raise money
07:49for a special cause. Thousands of runners have taken off for this charity fun run to raise money
07:57for motor neuron disease research. It's a huge thing and that's really where Kevin has been
08:04transformational in terms of his fundraising. Not only with the money raised to help try and find this
08:10cure for this awful disease but the awareness. And I think due to Kevin and other high profile
08:18individuals that have done so much for the charity it's a huge thing. Our former president Mike
08:23McMinnis actually died of MND and having that plaque was laid yesterday by his family to commemorate that
08:31he's a founder member of our club and so for Cranbrook it really highlights the importance of what we're
08:37doing as a club to raise money for the awareness of MND. The former professional rugby player turned coach
08:44set up the charity Seven in Seven in memory of a friend who died from motor neuron disease.
08:52Even other sporting businesses have joined the fun run to help Kevin's cause.
08:58Well obviously supporting the motor neuron disease is you know a key priority for us to come along and support
09:06all the work
09:07that Kevin Sinfield and his team are doing. Kevin Sinfield, I'm a great rugby supporter and I obviously know Kevin
09:14is a coach with the England rugby team and what he's done is absolutely amazing over the years.
09:21It's just so nice to give something back to motor neuron disease and support Kevin in his fundraising over the
09:29last few years.
09:30Around £220,000 was raised from this event, making one giant step towards changing so many lives.
09:41Henry Luck for Kane TV in Cranbrook.
09:46An iconic car showroom in Maidstone that repaired First World War planes and inspired Fisher Price's classic toy garage,
09:53which you might remember is set to be transformed following a £40 million redevelopment.
09:58Len House in Maidstone, known as the Roots building, has been redesigned by contractors Beauville since 2022
10:06to include 80 high quality one to two bedroom apartments, a private gym and commercial and retail space.
10:12You can see some of the historic images of that building there.
10:15The scheme, led by OB Holdings, celebrates the building's rich history while embracing modern living as well.
10:21The building is set to open this autumn.
10:27Concerns that Canterbury could lose its city status in the local government reorganisation has councillors and locals worried.
10:35The shake-up will see Canterbury now become part of a new East Kent Authority,
10:40also including Dover and Thanet, happening in 2028.
10:44It will also replace two-tier county and district councils with unitary authorities,
10:48setting off alarm bells for some about its city status.
10:51There's no legal or official benefits to it, but some consider it a part of local pride and a boost
10:56to tourism.
10:57The city council are working with the government and are getting legal advice on how best they can protect the
11:01status.
11:03Tenterton Town Hall has reopened following a £3 million renovation of the Grade II listed building.
11:09The hall, which dates back to 1790, had been showing signs of physical decline,
11:14including rising damp, poor accessibility and inefficient heating.
11:18Tenterton Town Council took on the restoration in October 2024.
11:22Two years on, the hall will now host events, including weddings.
11:25Bosses hope the investment means the building will become a vibrant, sustainable asset for the town.
11:32Well, that's all we have for this part of the show,
11:34but we'll be investigating whether or not autumn has arrived and has it made way for Christmas quite yet.
11:39We'll see you after this short break.
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15:10Hello and welcome to Kent Tonight, live here on KMTV.
15:14It was a bit of a disappointing weekend in Kent sports, with Chatham's own Moses Otama failing to win the
15:21IBF World Heavyweight title alongside another draw for Gillingham FC.
15:25It was better news elsewhere, though. An American football team in Mason have chalked up a flawless championship win.
15:32Let's take a look at all your sports news.
15:42First up tonight, Anne Gilliam's boss, Gareth Ainsworth, has hinted the club might sign another player before deadline day,
15:48as well as their match away to Chesterfield.
15:51Both are on the same day. The game starts at 7.45 tonight, the window shutting at 11pm.
15:56Chesterfield are 16th, having beaten Salford and lost to Fleetwood and Rotherham.
16:01It's not yet clear where Ainsworth wants to strengthen the squad, but says he's confident.
16:06He said, we've done some really good deals on deadline day. We could get a real gem on that last
16:10day.
16:12Moses Otoma broke his silence after the first defeat of his career against Filip Hergovic, saying simply, I'll be back.
16:18The Chatham boxer saw his world title dream shattered in the ninth round, when the Croatian took advantage of Otoma's
16:25exhaustion.
16:25After strong form in the opening rounds, eventually the referee had to step in and the fighter was taken to
16:31the hospital.
16:32He congratulated Hergovic on the win, saying he's gained experience he'll take to future fights.
16:38Ahead of the start of the rugby season, Canterbury coach Matt Corker has said he wants to highlight the community
16:44aspect of the club.
16:45The side have their opening fixture against Old Albanians next Saturday, but for the weekend they swap the pitch for
16:51the pavement, training in and around the city centre.
16:54They raced back from there to the clubhouse with the women and girls development teams at Merton Lane, lining up
17:01as well against Ashford for a joint session last Thursday.
17:04Corker said getting out in the sunshine to see the people that support us and hopefully finding some new supporters
17:10has left us in a really good place.
17:14And Maidstone's own American football team, South East Legion, finished their season as Division II national champions.
17:20The Legion beat North East Academy Giants 25-9 in the semis and South Wales Warriors 10-6 in the
17:27final, having already won the South East Division title with an 8-0 record, added the national championship to their
17:34belt as well.
17:35Well, the matches marked the last game for coaches Ray Allen and Lee Parsons, who said it's the best outcome
17:40I could have imagined.
17:41I couldn't end on a higher note.
17:44And that's all your sports news for tonight.
17:55And now, let's take a look at your weather.
18:03Well, tonight there's spots of clouds across the county blocking out the moonlight, but clear skies and colder temperatures in
18:09Royal Tunbridge Wells and Ashford at 15 and 14 into tomorrow morning.
18:13It's looking slightly warmer for your commuters, 16 and 18 for everyone in the county into the afternoon.
18:19It's looking a little bit warmer, 22 degrees there in the north, and it's pretty much staying that way for
18:25the rest of your week.
18:27Pretty much cloudy Thursday and Friday, that sun coming back out on Saturday.
18:38Well, as we begin the transition into autumn today, some people might be looking towards the festive period and others,
18:44maybe not so much.
18:45A 2025 YouGov survey showed that 14% of Brits start their Christmas shopping before October.
18:52Our reporter, Justine Latter, took to the streets of Rochester to find out what locals think.
18:56It's the 1st of September, which for some means it's officially autumn.
19:02Crunchy leaves, conkers and Halloween will be here sooner than we know it.
19:07But shops are slowly starting to stock Christmassy items too.
19:12At Time Christmas in Rochester, the festive decor never comes down.
19:17Time Christmas is an all-year-round Christmas shop that is coming up to our very busy season.
19:24It all certainly ramps up now.
19:26So literally from September now to December, it's crazy.
19:30The busy period is November.
19:32So when is it the right time to start thinking about Christmas?
19:36I spoke to some people in Rochester to find out what they think.
19:40As a business owner, I'm thinking about Christmas actually in August.
19:43But as a Christmas purist at home, I actually stopped shopping on the 1st of November.
19:48So I'm a bit of a hypocrite in that respect.
19:50I like to have everything ready, presents, food, all that stuff ready by the 1st of December.
19:58So then I can just relax and enjoy the lead-up.
20:02I think it's not before October.
20:04So September is definitely too early.
20:06I'm already thinking about it now, but I've got lots to get for.
20:09I'd like to prolong it.
20:12Yeah, you just like to prolong the agony.
20:15But for me, because we're busy and I've got so many grandchildren and children,
20:20I just need to really start thinking about it and get it underway really.
20:25But as it turns out, it's not just autumn and winter when people do their Christmas shopping.
20:31People are buying everything all year round.
20:33So they're preparing for Christmas.
20:36So the beauty of that is that they can then spend more money over the period.
20:41It's weird selling a penguin in the summer heat, maybe.
20:45Selling a reindeer maybe in August is a bit odd.
20:48However, it's more normal to us now because it's what we do.
20:52So as a business owner, when does Tom think is the best time to start thinking about Christmas?
20:58I'd say you need to be doing it in the next couple of months
21:00because what will happen is you won't get the nice things because everyone's already brought them.
21:05So you actually have to start fairly early, believe it or not.
21:08Whether you start early or dash around last minute,
21:11there's still plenty of time before we hit the festive period.
21:15Justine Latter for KMTV in Rochester.
21:21The new storm names for 2026 to 2027.
21:26And there are a few familiar ones.
21:28The names are chosen by members of the public and will be given to storms
21:32when they're likely to cause disruption or could lead to weather warnings.
21:35Last year, more than 40,000 names were submitted.
21:38And Storm Chloe joins us here to tell us more.
21:42So, Chloe, why do we actually bother naming our storms?
21:45Well, September marks the start of meteorological autumn.
21:49So this list has been prepared in preparation for potential stormy spells.
21:54These names are to make sure that people understand when a dangerous or potentially impactful storm is coming.
22:01So when a storm is a name, you know we need to prepare.
22:04So they can cause damage or disruption.
22:06There's also other impacts that are taken into account.
22:08For example, if it's going to be really heavy rain, it's often rain.
22:10That is one of the main factors of a storm.
22:12The Met Office say that using one official system to name storms makes it much clearer to people
22:18and it's more consistent when severe weather is coming.
22:21I see.
22:22And I think you've got a bit of a short list prepared for us.
22:24I do.
22:24So go ahead and tell us a bit about it.
22:25I do.
22:26I'm noticing some familiar names.
22:26Yes, I guess there are a few familiar names.
22:28So let's go through them.
22:29We've got Austin.
22:31We've got Bulo.
22:32We've got Chloe, which I have to say is a brilliant name, being my own.
22:35We're very unbiased.
22:37We've got Dano, we've got Evelyn, we've got Finn.
22:41So there's both of us here to enjoy the storms.
22:45We've got Gwendolyn, Heather, Ivy, Jade, Killian, Leisha, Miriam, Nicola, Olaf, Felim, Ruben,
22:54Sean, Theo, Vesna and Wenda.
22:57Although you might notice that some of these names are more typical English names,
23:00whereas there's others that we're not too used to seeing, like Gwendolyn.
23:04It's because the Met Office, the Irish equivalent and the Netherlands equivalent
23:09all get to decide these names together.
23:11So there's different names that represent different areas of each of these places.
23:15I see.
23:16And very quickly, why are some names chosen over others?
23:19No offence to the Nicola's, Olaf's or Felim's.
23:22So it's not because Chloe and Finn are the best names.
23:25It's not because they're superior.
23:26It's because whoever has, these are all public source names, right?
23:30So people can put forward their own names or names of loved ones and they can be chosen.
23:34For example, Chloe comes with a personal story.
23:37It was nominated more than 130 times.
23:40And it is about a mother of a five-year-old who describes a child as fascinated with the weather
23:45but can create a storm all by herself when she's tired.
23:48So I can totally relate to that.
23:49Finn as well.
23:51That's got a nice personal story behind it.
23:54It was chosen after an application by the family of a two-year-old boy described by his family
23:58as wild and forced to be reckoned with.
24:01So I don't know if that reflects you by any chance, Finn.
24:04But yeah, it's not just personal stories that all these storms are named after.
24:08It's also, there's some historical ones in there too.
24:10So Evelyn is named after Evelyn Murphy, who was one of the first women ever to present the weather
24:16on Ireland's National Public Service broadcaster, which is a nice touch too.
24:21I can keep going back with all the names.
24:22I'm curious.
24:23Tell us more.
24:23Okay.
24:24So there's Ivy as well.
24:25Ivy was nominated in the honour of a nine-month-old Labrador puppy who was affectionately known as the absolute
24:32destructor.
24:33So you don't want to see Storm Ivy anytime soon.
24:37But no, I mean, it is a bit of a, it's a bit of fun, isn't it?
24:40Looking at these names and looking at the background of them.
24:43And you know what?
24:44I am somewhat looking forward to Storm Chloe, even if it might be bad.
24:47Let's just hope it's not causing too much damage.
24:49Absolutely.
24:49I mean, how does it, how does it feel from your perspective?
24:51I felt, I feel a sort of strange sense of pride now knowing that there's a two-year-old out
24:56there
24:56who's so wild and went, right, he's the one, the sixth hurricane to come.
25:02That's how we're going to name it.
25:03That's named after you.
25:04So is it the idea that whichever one comes first will have the A name, second have the B name?
25:10Is that how it's sort of ordered?
25:10Yes, that's how it's ordered.
25:12So it's looking quite likely that Chloe will come up.
25:15Finn, a little bit less likely.
25:19Olaf, potentially we're not going to reach Olaf this time around.
25:22But yes, these will start from September all the way to the end of the meteorological autumn.
25:27So yeah, let's hope we don't go through 21 storms.
25:31Also, you might be wondering as well why there isn't Q, U, X, Y or Z names on this list.
25:37That's because according to the US National Hurricane Center, we're not allowed to name
25:41hurricanes after them.
25:42So you won't be thinking, Chloe, you don't know your alphabet.
25:45No, we don't have those letters in our storm list.
25:48I challenge as many people as they can to think of as many Z, Q, X and Y names.
25:53But I suppose if you had to name a storm, what name would you give it?
25:58Oh, I have a very beloved pet in my life called Juno.
26:04She's absolutely, she's always running around, always can't be stopped.
26:11And I think that'd be a perfect storm name as a storm that's absolutely taking over,
26:15especially taking over in Essex and the South East.
26:17Brilliant.
26:18All right, well, thanks so much, Storm Chloe.
26:23Well, that is all the time we have.
26:25You've been watching Kent Tonight live here on KMTV.
26:28More news made just for Kent throughout the evening.
26:31Don't forget, you can always keep up to date with the latest news across your county
26:34by logging on to our website.
26:36Well, that is all the time we have.
26:38Thank you so much for watching and see you very soon.
26:40Good night.
26:41Good night.
26:53Good night.
26:55Good night.
26:58Good night.
26:58Good night.
26:59Good night.
26:59Good night.