Catch up with all the news across the county with Abby Hook.
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00:00Hello, good evening and welcome to Kentonite live on KMTV.
00:28I'm Abbey Hook.
00:29Here are your top stories on Tuesday the 12th of November.
00:33Welby resigns.
00:34Archbishop of Canterbury steps down following abuse scandal.
00:39He did the right thing.
00:40He should have resigned.
00:42There's too much pressure.
00:43Locked in with rats.
00:45Conditions at Rochester prison ranked among the worst in the country.
00:49Well people shouldn't be leaving and they certainly shouldn't be working in conditions
00:52like that.
00:54And cheers.
00:55The Bionic Lord joins in celebration of Walder Slade litter pickers.
00:59Why not give an hour this week to do a bit of volunteering.
01:03The community would be a better place for it.
01:05And I've been the recipient of a lot of volunteering.
01:09People giving me great kindness and I get that on a daily basis when I'm travelling
01:12to London to the House of Lords.
01:23Last night the Archbishop of Canterbury has resigned after a damning report showed abuse
01:28within the Church of England.
01:30He apologised for his failure to act when he found out nearly 130 children had been
01:35abused by John Smyth back in 2013.
01:39This comes after the Archbishop previously stated his intention to remain in the role.
01:43Oliver Leader de Serres has been following the reaction across the county and country.
01:50It was only this afternoon that Justin Welby announced his resignation.
01:55Pressure had been mounting on Welby to stand down since last week in response to a damning
02:01253 page independent report into the cover up of the Church of England's most prolific
02:08abuser Jonathan Smyth.
02:11The report highlighted Welby could and should have formally reported the abuse back in 2013.
02:18More than 10,000 people signed a petition calling for his resignation, while the Bishop
02:23of Newcastle said he should step down as well, as did faith leaders here in the county.
02:30As a new person coming into that role, you have the opportunity at that point to stamp
02:36it out, to cut off that dreadful abuse.
02:41And whether someone is still in the country or whether he's somewhere else in the world
02:46should not matter.
02:48And the fact that nothing happened meant that for an additional five years until the guy
02:54died in 2018, people carried on being abused.
02:59And those I spoke to on the streets of Canterbury say they were shocked, but not surprised.
03:04Did you know that the Archbishop of Canterbury has just resigned in the last half an hour?
03:09No, no, I didn't, but good.
03:13He did the right thing.
03:14He should have resigned.
03:15There's too much pressure.
03:17If you knew about this man in 2013, you're complicit if you don't, well, react.
03:27My suspicions are he just hoped it would go away at the time and it didn't, and he needs
03:32to take the punishment now and resign.
03:36People lost faith in him, trust in him, yes.
03:39I think whatever he said, however he acted from now on, that would always be in people's minds.
03:48In his resignation letter, Welby says he takes personal and institutional responsibility
03:54for the period between 2013 and 2024 and says he hopes this decision shows how seriously
04:02the Church of England understands the need for change.
04:07The final word from this Archbishop of Canterbury then, but what's next for safeguarding in
04:12the Church of England remains less conclusive.
04:16Oliver, lead of the SACTS for KMTV in Canterbury.
04:20Well, Oliver joins us live in Canterbury now, just outside the cathedral there.
04:26Oliver, have other members of the Church of England here in Kent reacted?
04:31Well, Abi, that's something we're trying to find out at the moment.
04:36We did reach out to the Bishop of Rochester in the neighbouring diocese, a very senior
04:40figure within the clergy here in Kent, and he was not making any comments to the media
04:45as of this morning, though he did write to the Archbishop after the make and report last
04:51week.
04:52We did also reach out to the Bishop of Dover as well, who's from the diocese of Canterbury,
04:56the same diocese as the Archbishop, but didn't get a response either.
05:02I think it is quite a severe case, this one.
05:05That's why it's caused such a stir within the clergy, because it has impacted so many
05:11people.
05:12About 100 children were abused by Jonathan Smythe over several decades, and it is a lingering
05:18belief that if he had contacted the police back in 2013, he would have been brought to
05:23justice a lot sooner, before Smythe died in 2018 in South Africa.
05:30So that's kind of the reason it's caused such a stir, not just within the clergy, but within
05:35faith leaders across the UK.
05:38Oliver, what's next?
05:40What does this mean going forward?
05:42Well, there's a lot of speculation, Abi, not least because normally upon resigning or leaving
05:49their role, the Archbishop of Canterbury becomes a life peer within the House of Lords.
05:55That's very much now up in the air, and for the Church of England, it raises a lot of
06:00questions about what happens next for the Church, because whoever takes over will have
06:05to deal with a lot of mistrust around safeguarding, but also that the fact that Justin Welby was
06:10a very outspoken figure on a number of issues, austerity, Brexit, the environment, and they
06:16will have to steer the position of the Church going forward as well.
06:21So a lot resting on what happens next going forward.
06:25It's going to be something we're going to be covering very closely here on KMTV in the
06:29coming weeks and months.
06:30Oliver, thank you very much for those details today.
06:33Oliver, live for us in Canterbury there.
06:36Now, prisoners in Rochester are barricading their doors using cardboard and towels to
06:41keep rats out of their cells.
06:43The government says it will be taking immediate action to improve conditions and facilities
06:47at HMP Rochester, after a report outlined issues with drugs and violence too.
06:53Inspectors say it's failing as a training and resettlement prison.
06:56Firmint Dermott joined me earlier with the details.
06:59Rochester has a lot of history, of course, and His Majesty's Rochester Prison is no exception.
07:04It's the first Category C prison ever to be issued with an urgent notification for improvement
07:09after a reportedly shocking level of neglect.
07:12And how do we find out about that level of neglect?
07:15Well, the full report of the unannounced visit to the prison was published today.
07:19And like you say, the main takeaway is the poor conditions, whether that's the infestation
07:23of rats or the accommodation falling apart.
07:26But it's worth noting that HMP Rochester is actually a training prison.
07:30Its aim is to rehabilitate its prisoners rather than just incarcerate them outright.
07:35The report states it has the worst conditions inspectors have seen in years, to the extent
07:39that prisoners have had to use cardboard and towels to barricade their doors just to stop
07:43the rats getting in.
07:45But it's not just the conditions as well.
07:47The prison is apparently no longer safe with assaults against other prisoners and self-harm
07:52rising inside the walls.
07:54Charlie Taylor, he's the chief inspector of His Majesty's prison, spoke on the conditions
07:58themselves.
07:59Rochester was a jail that was slated for closure some years ago, but due to population pressures,
08:05it's been kept open.
08:06But it is really showing its age.
08:08The place is crumbling away in parts.
08:10Some of the conditions that men are held in there are really appalling.
08:15Vermin infestations, as you say, people putting up barriers to stop cockroaches coming in.
08:21Prison officers having to put up with rats, even in their offices that they described
08:26for us.
08:27Well, people shouldn't be living and they certainly shouldn't be working in conditions
08:31like that.
08:32And Finn, what does this mean for the staff inside the prison?
08:35Well, frankly, it just makes their job all the more difficult.
08:38Many prisoners are using contraband drugs while inside and staff are reportedly struggling
08:43to enforce good behaviour and keep a hold of supervising these wings in the prison.
08:47What's next?
08:48What's the solution?
08:49For now, inspectors are saying they're going to take immediate action.
08:52We don't know what that looks like yet.
08:54The government have chipped in as well and say they're going to start refurbishments
08:58for the cells, showers and windows and give staff extra training.
09:01Finn, thank you very much for those details.
09:05Now, don't forget you can keep up to date with all your latest stories from right across
09:08Kent by logging on to our website, it's kmtv.co.uk, there you'll find all our reports, including
09:14this one about a multi-million pound training campus in Ramsgate that could be sat empty.
09:22A multi-million pound project between training, education and business opportunities in the
09:26maritime sector to Ramsgate.
09:29The green campus has £6 million worth of levelling up funding from the government.
09:34But there are now concerns that the building might sit empty, with no public sector match
09:40funding so far, which was meant to be part of the bid.
09:44Neither you or I would go and sign a contract with a building company to come and make structural
09:50changes to our houses without actually having an idea of what those changes might be.
09:55And that's part of the frustration many of us have.
09:57Out of a budget of £50 million, at the moment we're looking at an empty tin shed with solar
10:02panels on the roof.
10:04I don't want to see us disadvantaged, I want to see £50 million spent to this community's
10:09advantage.
10:10It's understood the council will construct two blocks, with a third available for a maritime
10:15related business.
10:16But the local Regeneration Alliance says the project has a serious flaw, it doesn't have
10:20a business plan.
10:21In truth, I don't understand what the problem is, because it seems to me to be self-evident
10:27but you don't go and invest in something unless you know what the return on the investment
10:33is going to be.
10:34So it's not build it and they'll come, it's build it and provide a complete management
10:40infrastructure to enable their businesses to grow and the hub as a whole to grow.
10:45So what we miss at the moment in all of the data that I've seen so far is there actually
10:51is no business plan.
10:54In a statement the local authority says they've had significant interest in the opportunity,
10:58which will contribute to match funding for the Green Campus programme.
11:02The council remains committed to engagement and collaboration with the local community.
11:08And I hope it will create a positive narrative that highlights the opportunities available
11:13in Ramsgate.
11:15Money from the government's levelling up fund is time limited, so the district council has
11:19to spend it by March 2026.
11:22The authority is now looking for a contractor to construct the site.
11:26Gabriel Morris in Ramsgate.
11:30Now time for a very short break, but coming up, litter pickers are being celebrated in
11:34the county, welcomed by council leaders and politicians, and the bionic lord Craig McKinley
11:39will hear from him after the break, as well as the latest sports news from across the
11:43county with Bartholomew Hall as the Gilles face Stevenage this evening for the EFL trophy.
11:48See you in a few minutes.
11:52You're incredibly lucky even to see this beautiful animal.
12:11She's one of the last precious few mountain gorillas.
12:14But her life is full of mortal dangers, like this vicious trap left to catch other animals.
12:21Will you help protect her future?
12:23Please adopt a gorilla with WWF for just £3 a month.
12:27Call 0800 038 0901 or search WWF Adopt a Gorilla and adopt a better future for gorillas today.
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14:30For everything beneath your feet.
14:38People do feel like they've been ignored by this government.
14:42The Conservative administration have delivered the lowest council tax in Kent.
14:45We will continue to do that.
14:47We do need something else to supplement wind and solar.
14:50I think the boundary changes have changed a great deal in Kent.
15:08Hello and welcome back to Kent Tonight live on KMTV.
15:17More than 35,000 tonnes of illegally dumped waste will finally be removed from a beauty
15:23spot near Ashford.
15:25The rubbish has been piled up 12 foot high across four acres of Hodeswood since July
15:302023.
15:31In January, the Environment Agency placed a closure order on the site, stopping any
15:36more waste from being dumped.
15:38Campaigners have been trying to get the site of special scientific interest cleared ever
15:41since and now contractors have been appointed.
15:44A criminal investigation is ongoing to find out who dumped all the waste.
15:48At one point, it was estimated to cost between £10 and £15 million to clear.
15:57Next tonight, litter pickers in the Tunbridge and Moreland Council area of Walder Slade
16:00are being celebrated this week after more than five years of giving up their time to
16:05make their area clean.
16:06The Walder Slade Wombles have been treated to a lavish afternoon tea to say thanks for
16:10all their hard work and they were even visited by the self-proclaimed Bionic Lord, Craig
16:16McKinley, former MP for South Dunnett.
16:18Xenia Nagfi has more.
16:22The volunteers behind me are usually out litter picking but today, to thank them for their
16:26hard efforts, they're being treated to this lovely afternoon tea.
16:30The Walder Slade Wombles have been picking litter together in the village for more than
16:33five years.
16:35Organised by Tunbridge and Moreland Councillor, Des Kears, the volunteers say their hard work
16:39is far from over.
16:40The youngest grandchild, seeing Albert in the local council, volunteers, he said, Grandad,
16:47we're going to volunteer for that and that's all five years ago and we've been volunteering
16:52since.
16:53It makes me very unhappy to see the litter so I think just by picking it up every day,
16:58I'm doing a bit to make where I live a nicer place for everyone to be.
17:03It looks nice when people are coming in, people drive through and think, oh what a nice area.
17:08We always get people saying, oh thank you for what you do and everything, we always
17:12get comments when we're out and about.
17:15This is a brilliant place to come and reward our community volunteers who work tirelessly
17:19year round for us at Tunbridge and Moreland Council.
17:23I think they're a magnificent group and I think this is an appropriate reward and recognition
17:26for them because I think they deserve it and of course we've got a few other people, dignitaries
17:30here with us today just to celebrate the work that they do in the community.
17:34But should the council really have to rely on those giving up their time for free?
17:38Councils can do so much but this is people power at the end of the day and we're delighted
17:43to just offer our support to the efforts that they take to make Walder Slade a much nicer
17:47place.
17:49We see across the country those communities where people who live there really spend time
17:54looking after it and those which frankly don't and it's very notable for me actually going
18:00around Tunbridge and Moreland that every single one of our towns and villages is full
18:04of people who are absolutely committed to making their community a better place.
18:10Also invited along, former Kent MP, the now Lord Craig McKinley, stopped by to join in
18:14on the celebrations.
18:15After losing his limbs due to a battle with sepsis, he says he knows all too well the
18:20importance of the selfless acts of others.
18:23Volunteering is so important, whether that's in the local church, whether it's in the local
18:27Rotary Club, the Lions Club or just sweeping out the front of your house.
18:31And I've been the recipient of a lot of volunteering, people giving me great kindness and I'll get
18:37them on a daily basis when I'm travelling to London to the House of Lords.
18:40I often get people saying, would you like a hand, can I help you?
18:44That is all makes the, just the gel of community go round really nicely.
18:49So with five years of hard work under their belts and no sign of slowing down on their
18:53litter picking, it's clear these treats for the Walderslade Wombles are well deserved.
18:57Xenia Nakvi for KMTV.
18:59It's a sport now where Gillingham are on the road to face League One side Stevenage in
19:04the EFL trophy this evening.
19:06It comes just a few days after Mark Bonner's side recorded their first win in eight games.
19:11With the League Two side still keen to secure promotion at the end of the season, a win
19:15tonight could be the start of another type of glory as if it all goes to plan.
19:20They could secure a place in the competition's knockout stage.
19:23Bartholomew Hall joined me earlier with more.
19:26So a break from League action for Gillingham.
19:28Yeah, so this weekend Gillingham were supposed to be playing Walsall in League Two.
19:32That game was postponed and playing in the EFL trophy this evening.
19:36It gives them a bit of a break from that quest to being promoted back to League One.
19:40But after such a big result at the weekend where Gillingham finally got that win against
19:46Port Vale, you would kind of expect Mark Bonner to go into this game tonight wanting
19:50to rest his players, making sure they can use this two week break to their advantage.
19:54But he's actually come out and said that he's going to be playing a senior team.
19:57He's going to be going for the win tonight.
19:58And you can't blame him either, because tonight we have a chance for Gillingham to be back
20:03in knockout football again.
20:04They're going to be playing Stevenage.
20:06It's their last game of the group stage in the EFL trophy.
20:09They did lose their first two against Peterborough, against the Crystal Palace Academy.
20:13But tonight, if things go their way, Gillingham could be back in knockout football.
20:18Just remind us what Gillingham actually need to do to make it to the knockouts.
20:21Well, they need to win against Stevenage by two goals, and then they'll be confirmed to
20:26make it past the group stage.
20:28And it's not necessarily going to be an easy task.
20:30Stevenage are, of course, a League One team, a whole table above them, 14th in their own
20:35standings.
20:36And they've only won two of their last eight games.
20:39So, you know, they're not exactly in a purple patch of their own.
20:42Stevenage, it could go either way this evening.
20:44Of course, this trophy is the type of competition that we see some teams when they are focused
20:49on their own, you know, league endeavours.
20:51They don't put 100% into it.
20:53But Mark Bonner seems like he is keen to do it.
20:55And we can hear from the manager now, speaking after that win against Port Vale at the weekend.
21:00Yeah, I think the truth is, when we walked off the pitch here last time, we thought,
21:04oh, that's a dead rubber of a game, but it isn't.
21:06So yeah, that's great for us to have something on it.
21:09That'd be brilliant, wouldn't it, if we could go and do that.
21:12I'd love that.
21:13So we'll try.
21:14But we're obviously going to play against a really good side that they'll make changes,
21:16I'm sure, but they're still strong.
21:17So when that comes around, we'll have a quick meeting today, staff, before we leave to try
21:21and get a bit of a plan together for Monday, Tuesday.
21:24And yeah, we'll go and give it a good go when we go there.
21:27He seems pretty positive.
21:28So that must be a good sign for the team.
21:30Yeah, Mark Bonner, he loves a soundbite, doesn't he?
21:32He's a real character in these press conferences.
21:34When he was first actually brought up about the game tonight, he seemed almost surprised
21:38that people were thinking ahead to the next game and they'd just spent so many games trying
21:42to get that win.
21:43And of course, yeah, things are going to be buzzing at the moment for Gillingham, so going
21:47into tonight, they're going to have the kind of fire in their bellies to go and get a win
21:50from Stevenage.
21:51Kick-off is at 7pm.
21:53One more notable player to mention, actually, who's really quite confident that he's going
21:56to be part of the squad tonight, is Jadon Clarke.
21:58He scored the winner against Port Vale at the weekend.
22:01Let's listen to him now, speaking ahead of tonight's game.
22:03Yeah, I think it's definitely better to have something on the game than not.
22:07So, we're going to go there and I'm not too sure how many goals or whatever it is we need
22:11to win by, but we're going to go there and try another game of football that we're going
22:14to try and win.
22:15So, yeah, that's what we're going to do.
22:17And you're knocking on the manager's door on Monday, maybe say, fancy playing me up
22:21for my Tuesday game?
22:22Whatever he decides to play me up, I'll be happy to play.
22:28Gillingham playing Stevenage tonight.
22:29Now, next this evening, from farmers' market closures to small shops taking back the high
22:34street.
22:35Farmers' markets in Kent are building up their budgets and perfecting their profits.
22:39There's a lot to break down in this business roundup.
22:42Here's Tim Forster.
22:43Firstly, a farmers' market, which has run for 22 years, is set to close.
22:54Organisers of the Egerton Farmers' Market, held at the village's Millennium Hall, have
22:57described the decision as gut-wrenching.
22:59A falling customer has been cited as the key reason for the closure, with traders being
23:03unable to justify their stalls.
23:06An historic pub, in the heart of Dover, has been sold at auction for nearly £200,000.
23:11The Golden Line has been situated on the corner of Priory Street in Dover since the 1800s
23:14and has built a loyal base of customers.
23:17While the first record of the pub originated in 1841, the establishment possibly dates
23:21as far back as 1713.
23:24The construction of a new Aldi store in Folkestone could be scuppered by a legal threat from
23:28the rival Lidl.
23:29The development of the new store has been approved by Folkestone High District Council,
23:33However, Lidl now threatens to launch a formal judicial review of the decision, arguing that
23:37the council failed to assess the application with necessary care.
23:41An iconic nightclub has been put on the market for £850,000.
23:46The Source Bar, located in Maidstone, operated as a club for around 25 years before it was
23:50first put on the market in September for almost £1 million, with the pricing having since
23:54been dropped.
23:55In recent times, the club acted as the site for football fans to cheer on the England
23:59squad at both the World Cup and the European Championships.
24:02And finally, local traders are teaming up with an idea aimed at saving the high street.
24:07The Sport for Choice shop in Sheerness High Street operates a rent-a-shelf scheme, allowing
24:11small traders to showcase their products for a fixed price.
24:15Corona, Paulia Desai, believes the scheme to be the future of small businesses as it
24:19helps traders share their cost of bills, rent and business rates.
24:29That's Tim Foster with your Business Roundup for today.
24:32Take a look at this video, which has been making the rounds on social media of an historic
24:36river tours punter in Canterbury.
24:40Using what's been described as one of the oldest tricks in the book, the tour guide
24:44uses his feet to push the riverboat down so it can travel under the low River Stour Bridge.
24:49While this video has now been seen by more than 10 million people online and liked more
24:55than 116,000 times, Canterbury Historic River Tours have been carrying out trips in the
25:01city since all the way back in 1932, when they were known as Canterbury Friars Ferry.
25:07Makes you want to go to Canterbury on a boat tour, doesn't it?
25:11And just before we go, let's take a look at this beautiful view of a sunrise in Folkestone
25:15that will make you want to visit.
25:17Jason Baker captured the sun coming up over Mermaid Beach.
25:20He got there about 6am, said it was peaceful, he sat there, he watched the light develop.
25:25But he wasn't actually alone.
25:27He said a seal popped up its head a few times along the bay there.
25:30Probably looking for his breakfast.
25:32Well, will we be having more stunning skies like this tomorrow morning and over the coming days?
25:39Well, let's find out. Here's the full weather forecast.
25:47Unfortunately not.
25:48There'll be overcast across the county tonight with highs of 10 in Dover and lows of 7 in
25:53Tunbridge Wells.
25:54Tomorrow morning, much of the same.
25:56Clouds, some sun peeking through though, so maybe some signs.
25:59Some sunrises like that in Folkestone there.
26:02Heading into the afternoon, we can expect to see the sun sticking out between the clouds
26:07in Margate and Canterbury, but remaining fairly overcast right up until Saturday.
26:11Temperatures sticking at about 11 degrees across the board.
26:26You've been watching Kent Tonight live on KMTV.
26:28There's, of course, more news made just for Kent throughout the evening as well.
26:31Don't forget, you can keep up to date with the latest news across your county by logging
26:35on to our website, kmtv.co.uk, or keep us on all your social timelines by liking us
26:41on Facebook and following us on Instagram and TikTok too.
26:44But that's all from me. Your 8pm News Bulletin later.
26:47Bye bye.
26:58Star.