Lockdown, highlighted the importance of access to green spaces and nature for physical and mental health has been starkly highlighted. Those who live alone across our towns, or without access to gardens, balconies, or green space, exposure to nature is a key factor in maintaining positive mental health.
The government white paper on the future of planning policy in England states that changes are needed to stimulate housebuilding, without any evidence of how this would work in practice. Top down planning from the centre does not recognize that England is a very diverse country and what is right for one part of the country would be wrong for another.
Alan said "As the UK and the Medway economy recovers from the effects of the Covid-19 'lock-down' cycling has an even more important role as a healthy and green method of transport. Around Medway's urban and rural areas, it provides an attractive alternative to car and public transport, enabling social distancing to be fully observed.
Liberal Democrats would improve environmental standards in the Medway Towns by adopting sensible and consistently applied planning policies which are in line with the surrounding environment. The Conservative-led Council, by not having yet adopted a Local Plan, has had less control over developments in order to meet the Government's housing targets and this means developers often win their planning appeals, thereby causing great harm to our green spaces.
Local Liberal Democrats have vigorously [successfully ] campaigned to protect Medway's environment and recently have opposed developments on orchards located in Lower Rainham and rural land in Capstone Valley.
John Castle, the Liberal Democrats candidate for the upcoming Princes Park by-election believes that we can no longer ignore the reality, that Medway is no longer free from dirty air. We feel that air pollution must be tackled now, not only to save our environment but to save lives. A report produced by the Centre for Cities found that 1 in 16 deaths in Chatham "are exclusively driven by combustion in commercial, institutional, and domestic activities linked to long-term exposure to particulates." Nationally, Liberal Democrats are calling for World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines on particulate matter to be adopted into UK law, and met by 2030.