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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 1d

Remarkable statement in response from Cllr George Perfect, leader of the Medway Conservative Group on Cllr Lammas' defection.

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 1d

Multiple Conservative councillors in Kent are defecting to Reform today.

Cllr Robbie Lammas in Medway, a former staffer to Richard Holden, has jumped.

Cllr Gary Harding, Cllr David Beattie, Cllr Emma Elliott, and Cllr Aaron Elliott in Gravesham defected en masse this morning in Gravesham.

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 2d

Phenomenal for fans of Mark Reckless' current adventures. A Reform camera apparently glitched and replaced him.. with a walnut.

Will Hayward - Wales Journo @willhaycardiff.bsky.social · 2d

Remember that pic of the Caerphilly Reform candidate which looked edited?

Well I asked Reform UK about it.

Apparently it wasn't edited. The party indicated that the camera "glitched" which happened to "glitch out" of the photo the former UKIP politician and Reform supporter Mark Reckless...

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Reposted by Ed Jennings

Jonn Elledge @jonnelledge.bsky.social · 14d

"You don’t fight the politics of violence by quibbling with the details. You stamp it into a million pieces! You draw a f*cking line!"

If Keir Starmer won’t even make a moral case against deporting our friends and neighbours, then what is the point of him?

What Do We Have To Lose

If Keir Starmer won’t even make a moral case against deporting our friends and neighbours, then what is the point of him? Plus: some natural borders; and the non-existence of grey, and other letters.

jonn.substack.com

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 16d

Thrilled to be speaking at @goldsmithsuol.bsky.social again next month on why local journalism matters. Come for the PowerPoint, stay for the drinks reception!

Dr Rashmee Roshan Lall @rashmee.bsky.social · 18d

We've got a great line-up of Media Forum discussions at @mediacomgold.bsky.social @goldsmithsuol.bsky.social this autumn. Join us if you can. Everyone is welcome.

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 16d

Can't say I'm hugely surprised to hear this sort of thing from Reform though, but to see the government's response is just to say that the plans are "unfunded" is grim, like that's the fucking problem here. Utterly spineless cowards.

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 16d

Delightful to see the party currently leading in the polls front and centre across the news today, with plans to remove the right to live and work here indefinitely from hundreds of thousands of people, including my own partner. Really lovely way to start the week.

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 17d

Utterly grim.

Reporter abused in ‘disgusting’ toilet paper stunt

A reporter has told how he was abused while covering an asylum protest – with an organiser waving a bag containing used toilet paper at him.

www.kentonline.co.uk

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 19d

No comment 👀

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 19d

The Medway school at the centre of an argument over awarding a Nigel Farage t-shirts to a student winning an essay contest has u-turned and will no longer offer the prize.

They told this to the Daily Mail, which does at least reference our original reporting. What an odd couple of days.

School U-turns on plan to give Reform UK's 'Farage 10' shirt as prize

Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School originally wanted to award the Reform UK shirt as part of an essay-writing competition.

www.dailymail.co.uk

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 20d

Vote on the Lib Dem vaccine motion:

Yes - 73
Abstain - 0
No - 0

Motion passes. And with that, we're done.

We'll have full coverage in the upcoming edition of @kentcurrent.news. Subscribe for free here:

Kent Current | Substack

Independent news for Kent, covering news, politics, culture, and more. Click to read Kent Current, a Substack publication with thousands of subscribers.

www.kentcurrent.news

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 20d

Cllr Brady (Lab) talks about science not being debatable about vaccines. Notes that misinformation about covid vaccines is a problem. Perhaps a thinly veiled jab at KCC leader Kemkaran saying last week that she didn't know whether covid vaccines gave members of the royal family cancer.

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 20d

Reform councillors are falling over themselves to praise the Lib Dems for switching the wording to make it less demanding on action.

Cllr Morton (Ref) says, 'compromise has never been my favourite word, which is probably why I've been married three times.' Goes on to praise vaccines.

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 20d

The final motion is on vaccines by the Lib Dems.

The original version is below, but the motion has been amended ahead of the meeting that seems to have made it more acceptable for everyone.

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 20d

Vote on the Green motion:

Yes - 20
Abstain - 3
No - 50

The motion is defeated.

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 20d

Cllr Hook (LDem) says he supports the motion and that it is 'eminently sensible.'

Cllr Henderson (Ref) makes a speech about weeds that seems to be missing about half of the sentences given how abruptly it starts and finishes.

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 20d

Cllr Hood (Grn) says he's surprised that Reform is against the motion as it saves money and has been successfully adopted by Mid Sussex District Council.

Cllr Nolan (Lab) says she can't see what there is to oppose if Reform says everything proposed is being done anyway.

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 20d

Cllr Thomas (Ref) says he opposes the motion. He asks what if residents who adopt streets use pesticides anyway.

Cllr Wimble (Ref) says he 'can't see the point' in this motion as 'we're already doing it.'

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 20d

We now move to our second of three motions: This from the Greens to reduce the use of pesticides in Kent and to boost biodiversity.

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 20d

We are moving to the vote on KCC rescinding the climate emergency declaration:

Yes - 50
Abstain - 3
No - 21

KCC no longer believes there is a climate emergency.

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 20d

One Reform councillor takes umbrage with Cllr Jeffrey's comments, says 'I'm married to a child of Windrush.'

It all gets a bit testy for a few minutes. The chair tries to move things on to the vote.

Cllr Hespe (Ref), who proposed the motion, says climate change is not settled science.

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 20d

Cllr Jeffrey (Grn) argues that 97% of climate scientists agree, and the 'rest are in the pocket of fossil fuel companies,' like Reform. He talks about climate leading to more migration, which is ironic given 'Reform's hatred of migrants.' Chair asks him to withdraw and apologise. He refuses.

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 20d

Cllr Eustace (Ref) argues that all parties have funders pushing political narratives, citing the founder of Lush donating to the Greens. Says the only country that currently benefits from the current situation is China.

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 20d

Cllr Williams (Ref) says 'we hear scare stories about disappearing polar bears' but 'the evidence doesn't support the crisis.' Says the 'biggest concern is what this alarmism is doing to our children,' calls schools teaching about climate change 'indoctrination.'

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Ed Jennings @edjennings.bsky.social · 20d

Cllr Ricketts (LDem) say it's good news 'that we've all been worrying about nothing,' and that all it took to undermine decades of science consensus was someone with a 'YouTube account.' Says that 'as a time of rising sea levels, it's perilous to bury your head in the sand.'

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