Maidstone councillors are being wrongly blamed for the enormous expansion of house-building across the borough, says council leader Martin Cox.

Cllr Cox said he was well aware that the constant development and subsequent pressure on roads and infrastructure were causing concern, but to suggest councillors were to blame was illogical.

He said: "It's the Government who sets the housing targets. Our role is to find the best sites to accommodate those numbers through the Local Plan process.

And when it came down to controversial decisions on individual sites, Cllr Cox said: "None of the councillors are planning professionals, we have to be guided by the advice of our professional officers."

Cllr Cox is standing for re-election in his East Ward next week, where among the candidates he is facing is an Independent, Kate Hammond, who is standing on an anti-housing platform and who says Cllr Cox must be "held to account" for the council's expansionist housing policy.

But Cllr Cox said: "If Mrs Hammond were to be elected, she would find herself forced to make many of the same decisions."

Mrs Hammond is the chairman of the Save Our Heathlands group which is opposed to the borough's council's plan to develop a garden village of 4,000 homes at Lenham Heath.

Cllr Cox said: "Understandably people at Lenham don't want to see a development of that size. Nobody wants it, I get that.

"But if we didn't have building there we would have to find room for another 4,000 homes elsewhere across the borough.

"This is not going away."

Cllr Cox, a Lib Dem, denied that the issue was a party political one.
He said: "As leader of the council I try to be as apolitical as possible. I hold regular meetings with the leaders of all the political groups on the council where we discuss our future direction.

"And several key committees are chaired by Conservatives or Independents."

Cllr Cox made no apologies for the council's role as joint master-developer of the Heathlands site with the Government body Homes England.

He said it was an investment for the council, one of several the council was making, such as the purchase of the Lockmeadow complex, in order to provide a future revenue stream.

He said: "It will help us keep Council Tax as low as we can, and provide a better service for Maidstone.

Cllr Cox said that he and his council had to balance the best interests of residents in all parts of the borough, from Allington to Park Wood.

Cllr Cox said: "I stand by our Local Plan review. In it we are trying to find the best balance for Maidstone."

But he said he was concerned that in another five years, the Government would require the borough to go through the whole exercise again, with potentially more housing sites to find.

He said residents sometimes accused him of "being out to destroy Maidstone." He said: "That's ridiculous.

"I live in Maidstone and have done for 45 of my 54 years. Why would I want anything but the best for our town?"

The candidates standing for election in East Ward next Thursday May 6, are:

Martin Cox (Lib Dem)

Harprit Dogra (Con)

Kate Hammond (Ind)

Marlyn Randall (Lab)

James Shalice (Green)

For a fill list of candidates in all 19 wards that are up for election across the borough, click here.

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