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BBC News
16 hours ago
- Business
- BBC News
Could Kent and Dungeness be part of UK's nuclear 'golden age'?
We are entering a "golden age of nuclear", says Energy Secretary Ed Miliband, and calls are being made for Kent to be included in the planned new has proved to be a big month for nuclear power, with £16.7bn committed to developing the Sizewell C reactor as well as small modular reactors (SMRs) to meet growing electricity with the government looking to select an SMR site later this year, voices in the county say that Dungeness, with its existing infrastructure, is ideal for the latest low-carbon energy opinions are split, with opponents saying that new nuclear in Dungeness will be at the expense of the environment. Before defuelling began in June 2021, Dungeness B generated enough electricity for a million homes a year on average across its 38-year lifespan, according to energy company the plant has been shut since 2018 due to "significant" technical challenges, Kent County Council's newly elected Reform UK councillor David Wimble, cabinet member for environment, said he hoped Dungeness would be "on the list" for an SMR. Speaking to Radio Kent, he said: "People are scared by the word nuclear. We would really love to have new nuclear on Romney Marsh and would favour that over covering half of the marsh in solar panels."Mr Wimble said building an SMR in Dungeness would be "very simple" with the infrastructure to join the National Grid already in place from the former power station. 'Multiple options' The government's new era of nuclear energy focuses around small modular reactors, which are to be built by Rolls-Royce, and over £2.5bn has been pledged to the scheme as part of the recent Spending a site is selected later this year, the government hopes to have the new SMRs connected to the grid in the Cheetham, of the Nuclear Institute, said it was "more than possible" for an SMR to be built at Dungeness while decommissioning of the previous reactor took place. And, with the infrastructure and skills already in the area, he said there were "multiple options for the future of the site".He added: "We are seeing investment and the government are well aware that these investments need to be made now to have nuclear power for the next 10 to 40 years." 'Particularly problematic' The debate over whether Dungeness could return to the nuclear power fold has been long-running, even before decommissioning began on the current 2010, the government published its examination on sites it believed to be fit for new reactors by the end of its assessment, Dungeness was not deemed to be a potentially suitable site, as it believed that no new reactor could be built without more sea defences which would damage the site at a Special Area of a result, in 2023 a minority-Green Party administration Folkestone and Hythe District Council committed to a "new era of clean energy production". Richard Outram, of the Nuclear Free Local Authorities campaigning group, said Dungeness was a "particularly problematic" site because of the environmental impact. He said: "There's a very high possibility of flooding in Dungeness."The fact is that nuclear power will be too slow to have a meaningful impact on climate change."I think that, realistically, we don't have the time to wait for this 'golden age' to be delivered."But, with the end of 2025 now much closer on the horizon, the decision crucially did not rule out future then-Coalition government recognised the strength of feeling from residents, with most respondents in favour of Dungeness as a potential report added: "A new nuclear power station at Dungeness would be likely to have long term positive impacts on employment, the economy and communities at the local level."With Dungeness B now in the defuelling process, it was also argued that job losses from its decommissioning could be offset by construction and operation of a new remains to be seen how Dungeness and Kent will pay its part in any potential nuclear "golden age".A government spokesperson said no decision had yet been made on sites for the new SMR programme but that a decision was expected to be made later in EDF spokesperson said it welcomed discussion about Dungeness and was "happy to engage with projects looking to develop the site" but was focussing on its current sites as well as developing Hinkley Point and Sizewell C.
Times
11-05-2025
- Politics
- Times
Here in Kent they want to stop the boats. Did voting Reform help?
Everybody in Kent seems to agree on one thing about the result of their local election. 'People voted Reform because of the boats,' says a woman with a pushchair in Folkestone. 'It's mostly about immigration,' says a smartly dressed man on the town's Sandgate Road. 'We voted Reform to sort out the small boats,' says a woman in New Romney. 'There's nothing we can do about stopping the boats, absolutely nothing,' says David Wimble, with a broad smile. This is odd, because Wimble is the newly elected Reform councillor for Romney Marsh. It sounds as if there have been some crossed wires. Reform won a landslide in Kent, overturning a huge Conservative majority, and Wimble's thumping victory was the party's biggest: he increased its share
BBC News
06-05-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Reform councillor wants joint leadership of Kent County Council
New Reform councillor wants joint KCC leadership 6 minutes ago Share Save Christian Fuller BBC News, South East Share Save Reform UK Maxine Fothergill was elected as the KCC councillor for Sevenoaks Rural North East A newly-elected Reform UK councillor has said she hopes to share the leadership of Kent County Council. Maxine Fothergill was elected as the representative of Sevenoaks Rural North East with 42% of the vote, replacing Conservative David Lionel Brazier. She has put herself forward for joint leadership alongside David Wimble, who was elected councillor for Romney Marsh with 64% of the vote. "I think we make a terrific team," she said. Ms Fothergill is a former Conservative councillor for Bexley, a former independent councillor on Fawkham and West Kingsdown parish councils and also stood in the general election for Bexley and Sidcup. "I could do it on my own, and so could he. But whether it is leader or deputy, we would like to be able to work closely together and be able to support each other," she said Mentorship Speaking to Politics South East over the weekend, Mr Wimble said: "Our party is made up of 57 new members, of those 57, I think six of us have had previous political experience." Ms Fothergill rejected concerns over the lack of experience of other newly elected councillors with no previous council roles. She said joint leadership would allow the pair to offer mentorship to others. "What we want to do is build a really strong culture of supporting each other," she told BBC Radio Kent. Reform UK secured a majority of 45 seats on Kent County Council at the local election on Friday, all but wiping the Conservatives off the political map at the authority. Mr Wimble added: "I for one would love to play a part in the leadership." The new leadership of Kent County Council is to be announced on Thursday, following a leadership meeting, Ms Fothergill said. Follow BBC Kent on Facebook, on X, and on Instagram. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@ or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250.
ITV News
06-05-2025
- Politics
- ITV News
When does Reform UK take charge of Kent and who will be their leader?
The scale of Reform UK's landslide victory at the Kent County Council (KCC) elections appears to have taken even the party's own supporters by surprise. Nigel Farage described their success in winning control of 10 local authorities as 'the most seismic moment that English politics had ever seen' and claimed that Reform had 'replaced the Conservative party'. Reform UK won 57 of the 81 seats up for election on KCC, registering a 37% share of the popular vote and overturning a sizable Conservative majority. It brings to an end almost three decades of Tory control of Kent County Hall. The party had been in charge since 1997, and prior to 1993 had run England's largest county council uninterrupted since 1974. Cllr David Wimble suggests Reform UK 'takes time to get it right' when picking a council leader When will Reform UK begin running Kent County Council? Although the 81 newly elected county councillors begin their term of office immediately following the declaration of the election results, Reform UK has not yet formally started running KCC. The new Reform UK administration will take charge at the council's annual meeting on Thursday, 22 May. Until this time, the council does not have a leader or cabinet, with any urgent decisions taken by the non-political chief executive. Former Kent County Council leader, Roger Gough, lost his seat to Reform UK Who will lead Kent County Council? It is up to the party with a majority of county councillors – now Reform UK – to choose a new council leader. The previous leader, Roger Gough, lost his seat at the election and described the scale of the Tory defeat as 'beyond his worst expectations'. Mr Gough told ITV News Meridian: 'I'm not in the business of pointing the finger of blame at anyone [for the results]. 'I think what has happened reflects really how the Conservative Party lost its standing with a huge part of the electorate, particularly between 2021 and 2022. 'Many of the things that went wrong in government at that time are things for which we are all still paying the price.' Cllr David Wimble, who was elected with 64% of the vote in the Romney Marsh division, has expressed an interest in jointly leading KCC with Cllr Maxine Fothergill. Cllr Wimble told ITV Meridian: 'The win was huge. We were very surprised by the amount of votes we got. 'Realistically we thought we might get between 35 and 45 councillors, we always hoped to get control of the council but 57 [seats] is pretty amazing. 'I'm not saying I'm necessarily the right person [for the leadership] but I've got at least 18 years experience and I propose to do something a bit different to the others and that's to do a coalition leadership with another member.' It is understood that a meeting of Reform UK councillors in Kent will take place on Thursday, 8 May, to select a leader. The majority of the new Reform UK councillors in Kent have no prior local government experience, party sources confirmed. What policies might Reform UK adopt in Kent? During the local election campaign, Nigel Farage promised to bring in a cost-cutting department if Reform UK won control of KCC. He said the party would introduce a DOGE in the county, a reference to Donald Trump's Department of Government Efficiency, led by Elon Musk. Cllr David Wimble said: 'If there are savings to be made, we must save them'. What about the other parties in Kent? The Liberal Democrats have become the second largest party on Kent County Council, with 12 councillors elected on 1 May. This means they will become the official opposition, ahead of the Conservatives, Greens and Labour. It is down to individual parties to appoint group leaders. From Westminster to Washington DC - our political experts are across all the latest key talking points. Listen to the latest episode below...
Yahoo
04-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
New Reform councillor promises no quick fixes
A newly-elected Reform UK councillor in Kent has said the party is "not going to fix all the problems straight away". The party secured a majority of 45 seats on Kent County Council at the local election on Friday, all but wiping the Conservatives off the political map at the authority. David Wimble, who was elected councillor for Romney Marsh with 64% of the vote, said: "We need to be realistic about what we can and can't do." Appearing on Politics South East, he said: "I think the biggest worry is that they will expect to go in and make changes straight away and all of the panel here today know that's just not possible." He added: "Somebody stopped me today and said 'when are you going to stop the boats then?'. This is the county council." Some Reform UK leaflets delivered in Kent did feature national party messaging, including a pledge to "stop the boats". When challenged about this promise, Mr Wimble said he focused his campaign purely on local issues and on "the things that we can do". The new councillor sought to temper expectations, emphasising that the new cohort would need time to get up and running. He said: "People are saying 'what are you going to do on day one?'. "Well, it's not easy to do anything as a snap decision. Our party is made up of 57 new members, of those 57, I think six of us have had previous political experience." Mr Wimble rejected concerns over lack of experience. "All the [candidates] that have been elected have got experience of running their own businesses," he said. "They've had the problems of paying the wages at the end of the month. They've got the problems with the rates and council tax and things like that." Meanwhile, the outgoing Conservative leader of the council, Roger Gough, urged Reform UK to take the issues facing the authority "seriously". Speaking directly to Mr Wimble, Mr Gough said: "The county is now in your hands. What I would say is, please take the issues on that seriously. "Because ultimately, issues like equality and diversity, climate change, they are tiny amounts of expenditure in the context of the council compared with the really big issues – adult social care, children's social services, special educational needs – those are the things that any successful council is going to have to grapple with. "That's going to be the way to build a secure future for the county and the council." Mr Wimble said the party "takes it all very seriously". The local Reform UK party will meet this week to vote for a council leader. Mr Wimble has thrown his hat in the ring and said he would like to share the position with another councillor. The new leadership would be in place by "next weekend", he added. Follow BBC Kent on Facebook, on X, and on Instagram. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@ or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250. Reform wins control in Kent after Tory wipeout Kent County Council
