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Catch up with all the latest news from across the county with Chloe Brewster.
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00:34Hello and welcome to Kent Tonight live on KMTV.
00:38I'm Chloe Brewster and here are your top stories on Monday the 2nd of November.
00:43Sea Link plans approved.
00:45Locals near Pegwell Bay campaign against a new 138km electricity line.
00:52The decision means the habitats at Pegwell Bay and its marshes will be directly damaged.
00:57Farms forgotten. Kent's farmers say they feel left out of the autumn budget.
01:03So it's really just squeezed us even tighter.
01:07And creepy canines. Dogs in spooky costumes take over Favisham Park for Halloween.
01:13Everyone looks brilliant. It's just really good fun. Everyone's been really friendly too, haven't they?
01:17Yeah, yeah.
01:28Plans have been approved for a new 138km electricity link between Kent and Suffolk.
01:35The National Grid have said that the Sea Link will help provide homes and businesses with more affordable energy.
01:40But many have been campaigning against these plans.
01:44Naila Mohamed, join me earlier to explain what the Sea Link actually is.
01:48So plans have been approved for this 138km offshore electricity link running from Kent to Suffolk.
01:56And this comes as part of the Great Grid upgrade, which is the largest overhaul of electricity, of the electricity
02:03grid in generations.
02:04And this Sea Link has been in plan since 2022 with pre-application consultations.
02:10And there have been many consultations since, public ones and other ones, to ensure that these plans are feasible
02:16and that they help the local environment and the local people as well.
02:20But now in November, in late 2026, these plans have been approved.
02:24And work is due to begin in 2027, lasting for four years. That is until 2031.
02:31And you're in Pegwell Bay at the moment. What could the impact be there and for the environment surrounding it?
02:39Well, Chloe, I didn't know if you know, but Pegwell Bay is one of the UK's most internationally protected stretches
02:46of coastline here,
02:47based in the UK. And it's home to so much wildlife and biodiversity.
02:52It's protected for so many species of birds as well.
02:55But the Sea Link project will bring ashore so many cables as part of that project.
03:02MP Sir Roger Gale said this is an environmental act of vandalism.
03:06And since the pre-consultation in 2022, so many groups have been campaigning, opposing the plans,
03:13particularly Save Minster Marshes.
03:15It's not just Pegwell Bay, but Minster Marshes will also be converted, also have an energy converter built there as
03:22well.
03:22But Kent Wildlife Trust have also opposed these plans because of the impact it's going to have on wildlife and
03:28biodiversity here.
03:29And we can hear from Kent Wildlife Trust now.
03:31The decision means the habitats at Pegwell Bay and Minster Marshes will be directly damaged,
03:36including irreplaceable salt marsh habitat.
03:40There is a real risk that the salt marsh will have direct habitat loss via the trenchant to install the
03:47cables.
03:47We saw this with National Grid's previous installation called Nemo Link, which the salt marsh has not recovered.
03:55And if you stand on the shoreline, you can still see the scar across the salt marsh today.
04:00So there's a real risk that this irreplaceable habitat will have direct habitat loss.
04:06National Grid have committed to avoiding Goodwin Sands Marine Conservation Zone,
04:12which originally the cables were going to cross through.
04:14However, we have been asking for kind of more than the bare minimum, which is currently what we feel National
04:21Grid are doing.
04:22But the National Grid say it's a necessity for energy security. Is that right?
04:28Absolutely correct there, Chloe.
04:30So the National Grid say that demand for electricity is expected to increase by 50% by 2035,
04:36and then it's going to double again by 2050.
04:39Because the demand is just so high, they say there's such a need for this new infrastructure.
04:45And since then, they've actually sent us a statement saying that the ceiling will help carry more secure,
04:50homegrown power to where it's needed in Kent and beyond, while reducing costly network bottlenecks.
04:56They will work closely with councils and communities to deliver environmental improvements,
05:00plan construction carefully, and keep residents updated.
05:04So even though these plans have been approved, Minster Marshes and Kent Wildlife Trust say they'll continue proposing these plans
05:11to protect the wildlife.
05:12Thank you so much, Naila, for bringing us both sides there.
05:16The man who died on the M2 had left home just 19 minutes before he was struck, an inquest was
05:22found.
05:23The investigation into Jonathan Sam's death started today in Maidstone.
05:28The 53-year-old, who lives just minutes away in the Parkwood area of Raynham,
05:32was on foot when he was struck by several vehicles on the road.
05:36He was last seen alive by his wife at 6pm that evening,
05:40before being caught on ring doorbell footage, leaving his home just before 9pm.
05:45Police continued to investigate the circumstances surrounding his death,
05:49with a full inquest to take place in March.
05:53Police have confirmed the death of an 18-year-old man after a moped crash in Sheerness.
05:58Police officers were conducting a foot patrol near Beach Street and Royal Road,
06:02when the moped rider drove away from them and was subsequently involved in the crash.
06:07A 16-year-old boy, who was a passenger on the moped, was taken to hospital and is in critical
06:11condition.
06:12Officers are appealing for anyone with CCTV, dashcam footage or witness the incident to contact them.
06:18Flowers have been left in an alleyway by the crash site where people have been seen paying their respects.
06:25A missed opportunity, that's what Kent Farmers are saying about this year's autumn budget,
06:30claiming the farming industry has been left out.
06:33The government has said they're committed to supporting farmers,
06:36but Duncan Pearce, who owns a farm in Tombridge,
06:38said he'd hope for more from the Chancellor to help restore confidence among farmers.
06:43Sophie Denny went to meet him at his farm.
06:46Sun shining down on this farm in Tombridge,
06:49but its owner Duncan Pearce says the budget has cast a shadow over the farming industry.
06:56It felt like a missed opportunity.
06:58I think, you know, the Prime Minister in recent days and weeks
07:03has been talking a lot about food security, being national security,
07:09and it just didn't feel like in this budget
07:12there was any kind of understanding of how we might improve the prospects of our domestic farming.
07:22Kent has over 2,700 farms and small holdings,
07:26and support for farmers in the budget included suspending import tariffs on fertilisers
07:32and continuing price cuts on red diesel until July next year.
07:36The cost of diesel for a tractor like this one at the moment is at least 110 pence per litre.
07:43Now, with the new measures announced in the budget,
07:46this will reduce by about 3.7 pence per litre.
07:49But farmers like Duncan say that in the grand scheme of things,
07:53this won't really touch the sides.
07:55The costs and the inputs in farming keep going up,
08:00but unfortunately the prices that we can get for our goods,
08:05that hasn't improved.
08:07So it's really just squeezed us even tighter.
08:11So I'm afraid to say I don't think it has provided any breathing space.
08:16The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
08:19has said the budget recognises that food security is national security
08:23and that they will continue to support farmers to put food on our tables,
08:28keep our countryside thriving and protect the environment for the future.
08:32However, while Duncan says he understands that the government is facing pressure from all areas,
08:38he says farmers were hoping this year's budget would include more measures to restore their confidence.
08:44There are enormous needs,
08:46but the government has to recognise that this is a particular time
08:50and a particular moment in food and farming
08:55where we're finally balanced.
08:59And it could go either way.
09:01So some policy support and some targeted financial support,
09:07now is the time for that to happen.
09:09As costs continue to rise,
09:12farmers here in the Garden of England
09:14say that they too need space to breathe and grow.
09:18Sophie Denny for KMTV in Tunbridge.
09:22Well, I'm joined by Sophie Denny now to tell us more.
09:25Sophie, you said farmers had lost confidence in the government.
09:28Can you explain why that is?
09:30Yeah, so when I was speaking to Duncan,
09:32he was talking about kind of the inheritance tax change
09:35that was announced by Rachel Reeves in her 2024 budget,
09:39so two years ago now.
09:41You might remember that there were protests up in London as a result of these
09:45that you can see up on the screen.
09:47Kent's farmers were involved.
09:48So this change meant that farmers would have to pay inheritance tax of 20%
09:54on any assets worth over initially 1 million.
09:57This has now been increased to 2.5 million
10:00to try and give farmers a bit more headroom.
10:02That change happened in April.
10:04But they're still saying that's not enough room
10:07just because their farm land value
10:10and the machines that they have might be worth quite a lot.
10:12They say that the actual cash income
10:14that they get going through their farms
10:16actually isn't that much compared to maybe what the value of their farm is.
10:21And so many were calling on the government to reverse this income tax,
10:26sorry, inheritance tax change in the budget.
10:28But of course, that didn't happen.
10:30Well, the government, some would argue,
10:32has tried to improve things for farmers.
10:34Why are they saying now that it's not enough?
10:37Yeah, so as I mentioned in my report there,
10:39they have made some changes.
10:41So import tariffs on fertilisers being suspended until December next year,
10:46meaning it's cheaper for them to buy fertiliser from abroad
10:49and extending those cuts in the cost of red diesel.
10:52But they're saying that this is suspended until July
10:55and that's then when the harvest season starts,
10:57so when they're using more diesel in their tractors out on the farms.
11:01So that's why they were saying that it's not really enough.
11:04And Duncan was saying that,
11:05according to the National Farmers Union president,
11:08that's Tom Bradshaw,
11:09diesel prices are 65% higher currently
11:12than they were at this time last year.
11:15So they're saying that although, you know,
11:17they welcome having this change,
11:19it might not cut it in the long run.
11:21Well, thank you so much, Sophie,
11:22for bringing us that extra information there.
11:26Well, that's all the time we have for this part of the show.
11:29But coming up after the break,
11:31we'll be taking a look at the Why Journalism Matters campaign
11:34and why we should be supporting our local broadcasters.
11:38And we'll also be taking a look at some spooky pooches
11:41who gathered at Faversham's annual Halloween dog parade at the weekend.
11:46And as always, we'll be taking a look at the weather
11:48as it gets chillier and chillier.
11:50All that and more after this short break.
11:53But please don't go anywhere.
12:34All that and more after this short break.
13:03All that and more after this short break.
13:04all that and more after this short break.
15:55Do you follow your local news or any journalism outlets?
16:00Well, I follow different news programs.
16:06One of them is obviously BBC, which is where I get most of my news from.
16:12Then another one is Al Jazeer.
16:13There's another good one.
16:16CNN, sometimes they can be reliable, but sometimes they're not.
16:20I do read the Ken Press in different terms, but mostly I read the big national papers like the Guardian.
16:27No.
16:28Not really, no. No, I don't. I used to file over the paper, but the news was getting so bad
16:35I didn't want to read it anymore. So, no, not really.
16:38Do you think journalism is important for Ken?
16:41I do. I do.
16:45But why does it actually matter?
16:47Well, I was joined by Andy Richards, the channel director earlier.
16:51So, Andy, why does journalism matter?
16:53Well, that is a big question.
16:57I think journalism is so important to the communities that we serve.
17:03And even more so, you're here all the time.
17:05And I must say this quite often when I come and sit on this sofa, but as technology and AI
17:11in particular develops,
17:12it's really important that we can understand what we can trust in terms of trusted information.
17:18But I'll go further.
17:20It's not just that journalism matters, but local journalism matters.
17:24I think it's getting more and more important that communities are heard and that we're here to ask questions of
17:31people that need asking.
17:33And also there's things that are quite complicated to understand, like our viewers might have heard of LGR.
17:42That's the local government review on what we're going to be voting for and how our councils are made up
17:47soon.
17:48It's so important that we've got people like you and like me to ask those questions of people on a
17:54daily basis.
17:55And how can people at home differentiate between an accredited journalist and someone who's talking about the news on social
18:02media?
18:02Because it's getting harder, isn't it?
18:04It is.
18:04It is.
18:05And I think I've been a journalist for more than 20 years now, and it has changed over those two
18:13decades.
18:14I think now people are identifying journalists they know and they trust.
18:20They're looking at bylines a bit more.
18:23They're seeing real faces like yours and like mine, talking about things.
18:28So it's basically going to the sources of information that you trust is one answer.
18:35The second is to look at the type of journalism that those organisations have.
18:40So, for example, all of our reporters, it's now a requirement for them to have the NCTJ, that's National Council
18:46for Training Journalists, either the diploma or the senior qualification.
18:50You've got both.
18:52That's a really important thing as well, that as an industry that we have a standardised qualification.
18:59So we're all reporting from the same place.
19:03Great.
19:04Thank you so much for joining me, Andy.
19:06Let's take a look at the weather for the coming days.
19:13Well, the east of the county is going to be in for a wet night with rain in Canterbury, Ashford,
19:17Margate and Dover with highs of 12 degrees.
19:20Tomorrow morning will also be a wet start for much of Kent with wind speeds of 60 miles per hour
19:25in the east.
19:25Some of that rain will be sticking around in Maidstone, Dartford and Royal Tunbridge Wells into the afternoon, with temperatures
19:32reaching 13 degrees in Dover.
19:34And your outlook for the rest of the week involves partly cloudy skies with highs of 11 degrees across the
19:40board.
19:51Now, did you know you can catch up with all of our reports you might have missed on our website,
19:56kmtv.co.uk.
19:58There you can watch reports like this one.
20:05It does get lonely, you know, sitting in the hospital room, sitting in the hospital corridors waiting for results, waiting
20:11for tests.
20:12A woman from Chatterndon is raising awareness of deafness after her son was found to have permanent hearing loss less
20:19than a week after being born.
20:21So at this age, most children just want to play and explore and Beau is no different for his family.
20:27Raising a deaf child comes to his own challenges, including learning the best way to communicate and finding the support
20:34that he needs.
20:35Beau wears a hearing aid on a headband to support the hearing in his right ear.
20:40And Alicia says hospital appointments and equipment cost the family between £200 and £300 a month.
20:46Initially, it did feel like the end of the world, just because of, I suppose, the stigma around it.
20:54There isn't a lot about children's deaf awareness.
20:58And it's not until I've had a child myself that's deaf that I've found out this information.
21:04I don't think a lot of people know what sort of resources and support there is.
21:08I know that it's only going to get worse in some respects.
21:12Things like crossing the road and things like that are what scares me at the minute he's too young.
21:21Alicia is raising money for the National Deaf Children's Society, which gave her advice and reassurance when she needed it
21:28the most.
21:29They support children from all different ages from birthright up to 18 years.
21:33So I know that they're going to be there probably for a big chunk of Beau's life.
21:40Just being able to speak to someone on their helpline is just a huge help.
21:45Obviously, they know what they're talking about. They can give you advice.
21:49They're able to guide you in the right direction.
21:53She hopes to raise more than £1,000 to help other parents in similar circumstances feel less alone and access
22:00the support she did.
22:07And later we'll have a new episode of Invictus Sport presented by Finn McDermid.
22:12He'll be bringing you all the latest news from Gillingham's victory at Shrewsbury
22:15down to a Dartford dance player hoping to get to the Premier League.
22:19Finn joins me now to tell us more.
22:22Finn, what else have you got in the show for us?
22:24Well, Chloe, it's another action-packed episode on Invictus Sport.
22:27Like you mentioned there, we'll be taking a look at Gillingham, one of their players who's just finished a new
22:32performance plan.
22:33Has moved on and he's made his first goal, his debut goal for the senior team.
22:38So a big congratulations to him.
22:40And it was an emphatic 2-1 win away at Shrewsbury in a season that's been marked by some not
22:44-so-great away performances.
22:46We can see him there. He's done particularly well for himself.
22:49We'll also be meeting Bupinder Sandhu. He's walked from London to Dover, all for mental health awareness.
22:56He's gearing up for his next challenge after that, a 24-hour walk all across Gravesend.
23:01So there's plenty to have a look at.
23:03We also take a look at the unfortunate loss that the Juddians saw against a Birmingham team.
23:07That was unfortunate in rugby. That means that their flawless start to the season has unfortunately not worked out.
23:14But we will be looking at a different flawless start to the season, and that is in volleyball.
23:18The Kent Invictus women's volleyball team have managed to start their season completely flawlessly.
23:23They're heading into a triangle competition, so three matches all in the same day.
23:27We'll be speaking to their coach, former Olympian, Nathan French, all about that.
23:31Well, it sounds very exciting. Thank you, Finn.
23:35And talking about exciting, a large pack of Halloween-y hounds descended on a Kent park at the weekend.
23:41The annual dog parade and festival put on by Faversham Town Council saw many spookily dressed-up dogs and their
23:48owners gathered in the recreation ground.
23:50From dinosaurs to pirates and bats to fairies, there were all sorts of ghoulish pups bringing the town together.
23:56Justine Larder had a brilliant weekend and went.
24:01Just another day at Faversham Recreation Ground.
24:05Apart from lots of dogs all dressed up for Halloween.
24:08And this year it's got a new home.
24:11This is Faversham's annual Howloween parade and festival.
24:15So the Halloween dog parade has happened for a few years now.
24:19Mainly in the town centre in Marketplace.
24:22But this year we thought it to the wreck because the wreck being a bigger space and more of a
24:27popular dog walking area.
24:30And we've added a few more extra activities in it this year.
24:34Today at the Faversham Recreation Ground there are all sorts of different spooky dogs.
24:39There are dinosaurs, vampires and even pirates.
24:43We heard that there was an award for best dressed family.
24:46So we're here as the pirate family.
24:50Genuinely just because I had this in the cupboard last year.
24:52And I was like guys we should go as pirates.
24:55And then it just built on from there.
24:56I think we just love that Faversham does all of these fun events and things that anyone can go to
25:01and enjoy.
25:02Yeah and we've all moved here not knowing many people.
25:05And then because of all of these kind of events we've got loads of friends that we've all met and
25:09got really close.
25:10We are grateful for all of the different events that Faversham has.
25:14But there was only one canine clan who took home first place for best dressed family.
25:19And this is Cobby dressed as Frankenstein.
25:25And Dolly.
25:26Dolly Parton dressed as a bat.
25:29Halloween.
25:30Dolly Parton.
25:30Down there we have Buster who's a spider dressed as a bat.
25:35And we have another spider.
25:37And everyone looks brilliant.
25:38It's just really good fun.
25:39Everyone's been really friendly too haven't they?
25:40Yeah yeah.
25:41When you're with dogs people get friendly.
25:43There's been no hassle with the dogs neither.
25:45All the dogs have all got on and barking and snapping at each other.
25:48And for Sarah Jane who hasn't got a dog.
25:51She wanted to join in the Halloween fun whilst raising money for charity.
25:55First of all I had the idea a couple of months ago just going round at Halloween dressed like a
25:59witch.
25:59Just for fun.
26:00And then I thought well hang on I might as well do it for charity.
26:03Do it for a good cause.
26:04So I'm doing it for crisis.
26:06The costumes are just staggering.
26:09What people's imagination the way they dress up their dogs is fantastic.
26:14It's a wonderful event.
26:16And it's a nice place.
26:18It's nice to have it in the red.
26:19We're just so lucky with the weather.
26:21There were no tricks.
26:22Only treats for these ghoulish pooches at the parade.
26:25Justine Larta for KMTV in Faversham.
26:31Well you've been watching Kent's Tonight live on KMTV.
26:34There's more news made just for Kent throughout the evening.
26:37Don't forget you can always keep up to date with the latest news across your county by logging on to
26:42kmtv.co.uk.
26:44You can also keep us on your social timelines by liking us on Facebook, Instagram and following us on TikTok.
26:51Thank you so much for watching today and I'll see you very, very soon.
26:54Goodbye.
27:14Bye.
27:15Bye bye.
27:16Bye.
27:21You