As a Conservative, I am championing the Tunbridge Wells First campaign.

Full statement

We face the most important point for Tunbridge Wells for many years. The Borough Council, will soon be abolished and a new West Kent or ‘all of’ Kent’ Unitary Authority created. I am campaigning for all discretionary services, local assets and appropriate services are assigned to a new Royal Tunbridge Wells Town Council. The Borough Council, with its existing Leaders, is more concerned with their position the West Kent. In other Boroughs, councils are signing letters of intent to allocate these assets, revenue and local services to their main towns. Our Council has been negative, claiming only allotments are guaranteed for inclusion by a new RTW town council.

As Dep. Chairman of the (non-political) RTW Town Forum, I did the detailed work (later confirmed by the Council) that showed we only receive £1.4 million is services specific to out town while RTW residents pay £2.8m in extra tax which should be earmarked for our town. This includes payments for our parks, the Common, community space and other discretionary services.

The strong finances and low council taxes of the Borough of Tunbridge Wells is based on the many assets accumulated over the last 30 years or primarily Conservative councils. Without the Borough’s ownership on the car parks, the RVP shopping plaza and many other assets, our taxes would be much higher. We would also not had the opportunity to buy the RVP lease without the foresight of Conservative Councils. We stand to loose so much if we allow all of these to be absorbed into the new Unitary Authority. They should be retained by a new Town Council.

I my tenure as Deputy Leader of the Borough Council during COVID, we helped ensure we had a positive accounting financial result throughout. I also set up and led the cross party investigation into the Town Hall. This committed, and achieved a unanimous agreement to transition it to shared commercial office and work space. I worked with developers, bus and taxis companies to investigate ways of financing town centre transport - a concept not followed by the current Lib Dem Leadership. I championed the seating areas in the High Street and supporting an entrepreneur to clean up the Challybeate spring - making it an attracting feature while saving the council precious funds. I helped investigate and encourage the redevelopment of the old cinema site, meeting and problem solving with the previous owners and the new owners - Retirement Homes (a subsidiary of AXA)

Now the council plans to build a new cinema attached to RVP, borrowing £68m. At current interest rates (4.8% pa) now 5 times higher than pre-COVID rates (0.9%), the annual costs will be 5 times higher than the previous project. It is therefore critical a full economic case is made public, otherwise we could and up with a non-financial project draining council funds for years. Understand the economics is so important rather than simply the headline numbers and exaggerated cost numbers.

Tunbridge Wells parks and other assets should be owned and controlled locally.