It seems as if the each political parties campaigns are in full swing and the trolling has begun.
Local Authority (a local news site for the Politicos) made a remark about Onyx Rist allegedly writing about themself in a comment section on Kent Online.
Onyx then commented on the article denying it was them and they were of the situation and had contacted Kent Online themselves and had it removed.
Onyx’ comment on Local Authority
This was then used to ridicule them on a local Facebook Group by Labour activists and councillors.
David Field, a local Labour activist comment on a post by My Medway with the photo posted by Local Authority.
The comment was then laughed at by a Medway Labour activist and the Mayor of Medway whose wife is the Labour Party candidate for Gillingham South.
This could suggest that Labour are running a ‘dirty tricks’ campaign in Gillingham South and are behind the comment themselves, a Labour activist with too much time on their hands and trying to sabotage the Liberal Democrats campaign.
If allegedly this trolling is by Labour, why are Labour running scared of the Liberal Democrat candidate?
We have reached out to both Medway Liberal Democrats and Medway Labour for comments and will update this if we get responses.
Rochester East and Warren Wood candidates: Tolga Sirlan and George Clark
Medway Conservatives are rather unsurprisingly using this by-election to bash Labour instead of focussing on local issues.
In a statement on the Rochester and Strood Conservative Website it says:
“This by-election will cost the tax-payers around £30,000 at a time when Labour is disgracefully hiking council tax, cutting services and scrapping the Winter Fuel Allowance.”
For context, being an MP and Councillor means the person spends less time doing their council duties as they are busy with their job in Westminster. It is perhaps unsurprising that a sensible decision from the former councillors is to resign their council positions.
This could be a statement from the Conservatives after Kelly Tolhurst and Rehman Chishti did not resign their council seats for a very long time meaning local residents had a councillor not focussing on council duties because they were too busy in Westminster.
It is perhaps worth reminding them that in 15 years, we should have had only three General Elections but after the end of the coalition, they were incapable of managing a stable government. They too cut services, refused to process Asylum Seekers so they were stuck in overcrowded hotels not legible for even state benefits (yes, that’s the reality regardless of the lies Reform UK are telling the public), weaponising vulnerable people and killing off our relatives during the pandemic and the PM Boris Johnson at the time laughing about it on Whatsapp.
It’s perhaps given that, that the Conservatives are not Labours biggest threat in Rochester East & Warren Wood. Reform UK, given the work and focusing on local issues not banging on about immigration have a chance at winning this seat off of Labour while the Greens are likely to scoop up the left wing support in Rochester East & Warren Wood.
The Lib Dems are likely to be last place in this ward and from the socials don’t appear to be doing any work and focusing on Gillingham South.
Candidates have started to be announced and our friend Onyx is the Lib Dem Candidate for Gillingham South. Our support might change throughout the campaign and may end up being split in Rochester East & Warren Wood depending on who the party’s candidates are.
The progressive parties have already picked their candidates and we are just waiting on Tories and Reform UK.
Gillingham South Candidates (1 seat):
Liubov Nestorov (Lab)
Onyx Rist (Lib Dem)
Trish Marchant (Green)
In Gillingham South, we are backing Onyx Rist the Liberal Democrat candidate.
Rochester East Candidates (2 seats):
Jeremy Spyby-Steanson (Green)
Grace Duffy (Green)
Robert Wyatt (Lab)
Caroyn Hart (Lab)
Sarah Manuel (Lib Dem)
Anita Holloway (Lib Dem)
We are currently backing the Green Party candidates Jeremy Spyby-Steanson and Grace Duffy in Rochester East.
Keep up to date because there will be more candidates to be announced.
For context, Strood residents continue to be left without water but Southern Water have now set up water stations in Gun Lane and Medway Council are kindly opening up Strood Leisure Centre for people to take showers.
Vince Maple (Lab), Leader of Medway Council did post and was making calls to try and deal with the situation. This was unseen by Kelly Tolhurst who posted about Labour’s lack of response.
Vince, rightly defended himself in a reply showing Kelly the tweet from the morning and that was that… So you would have thought.
Nothing further from either Vince or Kelly however Cllr Alex Patterson (Lab) chimed in with a post that ironically from him, sounded more like a sensationalist journalist than a political figure head.
First out of two posts Second post
Labour were in power in 1997 – 2010 and had an opportunity then to re-nationalise it should they have chosen to. Blaming the Conservatives for something they already had an opportunity to change is not a strategy that works out of their current voter base and is an excuse that’s dwindling within.
Micheal Pearce (Ind) hit back with a slightly themed comedic tweet.
What is clear, is that both Labour and the Conservatives are clearly okay with playing political games with people’s lives. This is not okay and should definitely be called out.
Blame the water company for only setting up a water bank after 31 hours (according to some residents).
The MP’s have now resigned their positions on Medway Council meaning their will be by-elections in the Gillingham South ward for one councillor and Rochester East & Warren Wood ward for two councillors.
The election is due to take place on February 6th 2025.
Rochester East will be a straight fight between Labour and the Tories with possibly Reform UK while Gillingham South looks set to be interesting.
The Lib Dems have the potential to win Gillingham South back and with their rumoured candidate could easily win votes off of the Green Party and encourage soft Tories to vote for them as well as gain some soft Labour voters disgruntled by the current government. Reform UK might also put up a fight here which may not go down as well due to the various ethnicities in Gillingham South.
Labour could lose both of these by-elections which would take away their majority on Medway Council unless they gave the whip to the now former Labour but currently independent councillors.
The interesting thing with these by-elections is that the ‘norm’ of who came where in the last locals does not actually apply.
Lib Dems could win Gillingham South back and we could see Reform UK on the council in Rochester East and Warren Wood should they stand there. Rochester East could also be split Labour/Tory or split Labour/Reform. The Green Party also has potential to gain ground in Rochester East and Warren Wood but they look set at a dead loss by fighting Gillingham South.
Rumoured in Gillingham South, a battle between the 2019 Chatham Labour Branch…
Fort Amherst are doing something different and out of the box this Christmas with their event ‘A Glimpse of Christmas Past’.
The Nepolionic Fort, used in both world wars is home to bringing History to life through a complete immersive experience. You are taken through the meanings of Christmas for different ages and religions.
It talks about the Christian history as well as the Pagan history of the meaning in the UK.
On some tours, there may be actors too but the Fort has been transformed into different areas recreating a real feel.
This is one of those events where traditional and progressives alike can enjoy. From learning about where traditional carols come from to being immersed in what Christmas Day was like for soldiers and their families through war time.
It’s education and fun for the kids as well the adults.
The event is on until the 23rd December 2024.
Just Text Me recommends visiting Fort Amherst this Christmas. Tickets can be purchased here.
The local political parties are at war deciding how to help local businesses.
Gillingham & Rainham MP, Naushabah Khan (Lab) met with local business at the weekend however Onyx Rist (Lib Dem) Diversity Officer and Lib Dem Community Champion for Gillingham has criticised Labour and the Conservatives positions when it comes to local business.
They said:
“Local businesses like the shops on Gillingham High Street or the shops on Canterbury St are like family. They grow the local economy and are resident-friendly.”
They continued on “This is why it is so important that the government rethinks and scraps their National Insurance hike on our local small businesses.”
They then said “After years of Conservative economic vandalism, businesses here in Gillingham have been hammered with increased costs and less support. And I am disappointed at Labour’s recent budget hikes.”
They finished with a plea to Naushabah Khan “We must have an honest re-think and I urge my local MP to challenge her party to give more support which Medway deserves.”
Medway Green Party has also chimed in on the debate retweeting a pledge post from their national party.
Screenshot of Medway Green Parties post
Medway Conservatives and Reform UK are yet to chime in with their thoughts (although you can guarantee they will try and blame immigration somewhere).
Despite Kier Starmer promising no increases to National Insurance during the 2024 General Election campaign, the Labour government claim the National Insurance hike is to offset a £22Billion black hole they claim they were left by the Conservatives.
RØRY has previewed her new album Restoration to her fans and it is looking set to be the best album of 2025.
RØRY whose birth name is Roxanne Emery created a new genre of music called SADCØRE (a song exists of the same name exists) which brings heartfelt direct emotion in music and here at Just Text Me we live for it.
Restoration takes you on a journey that most of RØRY’s fan base including myself related to. Struggles with mental health, family issues, trauma etc are all features on RØRY’s music. This doesn’t feel like a victim album.
This album celebrates survival through difficult times and is certainly music for survivors.
“Don’t think I’ll make it till 30” in ‘Hold On’ is certainly something I relate to and got me absolutely balling my eyes out. I remember doing psychodrama at therapy and another person there had that experience and we cried together because we both made it. I’m 31 now.
Musically, it’s as alternative as ever (no pun intended lol). RØRY is certainly showing their song-writing skills in this. Epic guitars with synths and catchy rhythms with heartfelt lyrics make RØRY’s unique blend of music. Plus, it’s fully independent.
Now, I’m in a position where I can’t wait for you all to hear it too.
Fort Amherst Halloween Horrors is in its 41st year of scares.
The event at Chatham’s Fort Amherst is a yearly event and cultural to Medway. The attraction is the only one in the country where the actors can and will touch you.
With all of that, being the longest running scare attraction in Europe comes with its expectations. And it has succeeded.
Many nights are boasting sold out tours. With their Facebook page announcing having added extra times on certain days.
Today (27th October) over 60% of tours having been sold out, Halloween (31st October) almost being sold out – it simply is – best to book your ticket online.
This is a cultural event in Medway and the actors, stewards and tour guides are all volunteers and the money made from the event goes to Fort Amherst.
The event started off in 1983 to stop the local council at the time building on the site (so part of a political campaign) and has evolved into the country’s leading scare attraction.
You can book tickets to Fort Amherst Halloween Horrors here!
RØRY, who will be doing another tour of the UK in 2025 has announced her debut album will be called Restoration.
The tracklist will be:
if pain could talk, what would it say?
In The Bible
WOLVES
hold on
Blossom
Sherlock Holmes
One Drink Away
MORALITY $UICIDE
SORRY I’M LATE
The Atheist
The singer who created her own genre of music called SADCØRE will also be touring the UK in March 2025. They have been vocal about supporting trans rights and about the war with Israel and Palestine.
Singles released from this album to date are; Blossom, MORALITY $UICIDE and In The Bible.
The album will be released on the 31st January 2025 and is available to pre-order now here.
We were at Medway Pride today and it was a fantastic event. We filmed footage for a documentary that will be released in the coming months.
For the first time in Medway Pride history we had two of our three MPs in the parade. Naushabah Khan MP (Lab, Gillingham & Raingam) and Tristan Osborne (Lab, Chatham & Aylesford) turned up to the parade and hung out with the community.
Medway Lib Dems were in the parade as usual and Onyx Rist (Lib Dem Diversity Officer) and Stuart Bourne (Lib Dem Campaign Co-ordinator) were blowing whistles.
Whilst Medway Labour and Medway Lib Dems were in the parade, they also had a stall and so did Medway Green Party.
There was also some people there that included a drama workshop with small skits for people with ADHD aswell as Club Au some and Rainbows over Medway.
Medway Greens didn’t like the position of their stall given Labour an advantage position but Labour were one of the sponsors of the event. The Lib Dems seemed to be content and whilst it was hot seemed to be enjoying themselves.
There was an engagement (we caught in 4K), food, music and an all round good time.
Hillary and the Medway Pride team should be proud of themselves for today. Fun and excitement as well as real bonding between communities.
Medway has seen it’s fair share of racism. People in the Medway’s political realm have also had their fair share of homophobia/transphobia and outright bigotry.
The tweet above was sent from a supposed Reform UK supporter.
Onyx who is one of the journalists here at Just Text Me and is also the Diversity Officer for Medway Liberal Democrats has faced their fair share of criticism on them being non-binary.
And onto Medway Lib Dems. When they came out and supported trans youth by writing an open letter, they also faced alot of trans hate on X formerly known as Twitter. You can read more about that here.
As Medway Pride is about to take place, it’s clear there is still an overwhelming need for this to exist.
At Pride, typically you will see the Lib Dems and the Labour Party in the Parade and in the Castle Gardens you’ll see Medway Lib Dems, Medway Labour and Medway Greens. Medway Conservatives typically haven’t been there and whether or not they turn up remains to be seen.
Medway Pride is one of the rare moments of political unity with Medway Labour/Lib Dems/Greens visiting eachother’s stalls, having a laugh and being generally friendly with eachother in public.
There are other people who are there too such as Kent Police, organisatons and live music until 8pm.
Details of Medway Pride:
Parade: Rochester High Street at 10.45am
Rochester Castle Gardens open from 11am.
Let’s do this Medway. Support the LGBT+ Community in Medway.
Grab a drink. You’re thirstyfor some Labour drama.
Medway Labour have angered residents about what they claim is hypocrisy on the part of Medway Labour. In a scadal on X (formerly known as Twitter, a tweet unearthed from Lauren Edwards, the new MP for Rochester & Strood calling Ethonians ‘f******g ret**ds’ in 2009.
There has been silence on the most part from within Medway Labour. Medway Conservatives Leader and Leader of the opposition George Perfect wrote an open letter asking for a response and the response is – in the picture.
The anger comes after Cllr Shokar was called out for his comments at a counter protest last week at the Medway Innovation Centre. Cllr Shokar called the fascists “Nazi’s” and was called out by MP for Chatham and Aylesford Tristan Osbourne for using the language.
The resonse from Medway Labour in regards to Lauren Edwards MP is essentially a long way of saying “no comment” and residents are not happy – taking to X: @ emfrakken said “Opening with ‘more than a decade ago’ is not an excuse for calling people ‘retards’. It’s not like she was a child and didn’t know better she was a fully grown adult. Her views are now known, and we see her for what she is.”
@ deewkd_creative “Basically “we’ve got no intention of doing anything about it because we don’t hold our own to the same standards as other parties”. Really disappointed in you Vince, thought you had more integrity than that. Shameful”
@ dukeofdench “This is a disgrace. If this had been any other party the Labour would be going crazy! Absolutely feel let down and tricked into believing in Labour being any different.”
@ mrmbrewer “Very disappointing from the leader of the council.”
@ RCantaldo “Hypocrisy at its finest”
It seems if Medway wants to retain their seats, they need to prove something to residents.
Kelly Tolhurst former MP for Rochester and Strood quoted the tweet saying “The true face of #rochesterandstrood #Labour a bunch of hypocrites. At least we know what the character of our new MP is now“
A diversity statement has been officially signed by most of our political parties.
Medway Green Party led on this, with Medway Lib Dems being the second to sign the statement shortly followed by The Independent Group, Reform Medway and Medway Conservatives.
The Medway Labour Party have recently come under criticism for Lauren Edwards tweets from 15 years ago (it’s been a while since such scandal has arisen).
At a time when unity is needed Medway Labour refusing to sign this is a bad look on them.
Grab some grub, and an ice cold drink, a very long analysis.
The UK has been hit with far right violence in recent weeks. So how did we get here?
The last 14 years have seen immigration consistently hit the forefront of our mainstream media as an ‘issue’. It started off a little ‘nice’ seeming very measured.
Gradually, specifically since 2014 we have seen the debate become so toxic. To start with, toxic views were not being aired regularly. Until the Brexit Referendum.
Some people voted Brexit not for immigration reasons but due to TTIP (which our Conservative government bought in anyway, so we wanted another referendum).
The Referendum Campaign
This was a Nigel Farage poster. It’s very similar to that of the Nazi Party in the 1930’s. A poster they used in a very similar way too, to demonize a group of people – and we all know where that led us to.
The campaign for Brexit was funded by big corporations too and you have to wonder why. Why don’t big corporations like human rights? Big corporations that now fund Reform UK? – we’ll get into that in a bit.
Labour MP Jo Cox literally lost her life to a far right terrorist during that period.
Giving platforms to dangerous people
Nigel Farage from the moment the vote was announced was hounded as a ‘hero’ by the BBC, ITV, Daily Mail and other forms of media.
This allowed people some sort of ‘gateway’ into racism.
With the way algorithms work on social media, the same people who watched things about Nigel Farage would have then seen posts about Tommy Robinson (AKA Stephen Yaxeley Lennon). This then projected them to believe conspiracy theories that become a second “truth” about “Muslims wanting Sharia Law in the UK” or about “no go zones” – this is easily debunked when people actually engage with the Muslim community, some of which escaped Sharia Law countries to come to the UK. Most of the Muslim community do not want Sharia Law in the UK but those promoting hate tend to lie to get their point across and those who believe conspiracy theories easily tend to fall for it. Which brings us to the next point…
Social Media (part one)
Now, Social Media isn’t all bad but the spread of misinformation is. Allowing people to post as they like meaning we have seen the best of humanity, people raising awareness for important issues. We have however seen the very worst of people, trolling, bullying hate and lies. Techniques used by the far right.
This has seen conspiracy become some sort of twisted reality in some people’s mind.
2017: Corbyn close to being PM
The mainstream media did not take Jeremy Corbyn very seriously. When Theresa May announced a snap election, it was widely accepted as she would gain a larger majority allowing her to get Brexit through. The then Labour Party cost her her majority and that’s when things got really toxic.
The lead up to 2019
In the lead up to the 2019 snap election the mainstream media threw waves of hate, false information and lies about Jeremy Corbyn into the mainstream media. Antisemitism become a buzz word surrounding Corbyn and Corbyn supporters who were even slightly critical of Israel’s attack on Palestinians.
The Conservatives had a leader called Boris Johnson who called Muslim women “letter boxes”.
The media were completely silent about Islamophobia but were up in arms about Antisemitism.
That paved the way for what happened next.
2019 – another snap election
When it comes to politicians, the word “liar” is what people think of. This election was different. It was literally a fight of truth v lies. Whenever Corbyn’s statements were fact checked they were proven to be just that and when it was Boris Johnson his ‘facts’ were always a big lie.
The mainstream media continued their anti-Corbyn tirade, Labour Party staffers were sabotaging the campaign from within, Corbyn supporters were getting bullied in the party.
Lies won over truth.
Pandemic
We had to go into lockdown. The government did do the right thing with things like Furlough and putting in protections however with people not being allowed to do normal activities, and stuck at home, this allowed conspiracy theories to grow.
People became scared of a vaccine due to poorly researched conspiracy theories. If they had researched the vaccine properly, they have realised the vaccines used were made in 2003 against another strand of Corona virus that was tested. Remember Covid was around long before the pandemic.
This allowed the far right to grow and tap into these conspiracy theories to exploit the population.
Partygate
This created a further dis-trust and barrier with people and politicians. The Tory party went on a continuous downfall.
Again, the actions that happened allowed more conspiracy theories that the far right were tapping into.
Hamas attacks Israel
Hamas terror attacks on Israeli civilians allowed Israel an excuse to further their ongoing attacks on innocent civilians in Gaza. Those who know the history will know that Gaza has been attacked by Israel for decades however this have the mainstream media and our politicians from the Conservatives and Labour to legitimise abuse by Israel.
Lucy Letby
A white-British lady kills innocent children and the far right were silent while those on the left were calling for stronger sentences.
A lot of the far right again, were calling her innocent despite the evidence.
Reform UK get mainstream coverage
Again, Reform UK get mainstream coverage despite not even being a political party but a business. Even supposedly un-bias corporations such as the BBC gave them more publicity than the Liberal Democrats or the Green Party despite Reform UK at the time having no representation in Parliament and not having any council seats.
2024 Local Elections
Whilst we didn’t have local elections in 2024 many other areas did.
Council seats wise, The Tories were pushed into 4th place.
Labour came first
Lib Dems came second
Greens came third.
Reform UK won a handful of local seats (less than 10 out of thousands across the country) and it was painted as a victory for Reform UK giving them undeserved news coverage.
2024 General Election
Mainstream left and centrist parties realised the way to get the Tories out was by ruthlessly targeting areas and sacrificing vote share.
Reform UK showed they didn’t understand politics by doing ‘Donals Trump’ styled speeches, claims of cheating, vote rigging ect spun across the far right despite the system we have being practically impossible to “rig” votes in a conventional way.
I’d agree the two party system is rigged but mainstream parties realised the way to overcome it is targeting areas.
When you look at the vote share combined of progressive parties and progressive independent MP’s you can see this is where the majority of the UK are.
Most of the UK are welcoming to immigration and if we had proportional representation it would be the Liberal Democrats or the Green Party who would take control of the government.
Reform UK would not even win seats in a fairer system but figures in Reform UK continue to spread hate and make claims based on little evidence and misinformation.
Soldier stabbed in Brompton
A soldier was stabbed by a man in Brompton. Anthony Esan, an British born male stabbed a soldier in Brompton. The far right were claiming it was a terror attack despite the police saying it wasn’t.
While we do not know the faith of Anthony Esan lies and reports claiming he is Muslim and an immigrant on social media by Reform UK members and blatant Islamophobia where spread.
We do know that Anthony Esan is from the UK.
Innocent children murdered in Southport (Social Media Part 2)
The murder of innocent children in Southport is a horrible incident but this incident also shows how sick and twisted the far right have truly become.
A vigil was ruined by the far right who attacked a mosque because they were believing the attackers name to be something it wasn’t and was saying he was a Muslim refugee.
This lie was spread far and wide by social media. Particularly on X (formerly Twitter).
Turns out the “refugee killer” was born in Britain and attended an evangelical church.
Using children’s deaths as an excuse for violence
It seems those causing the violence we are seeing are strangers to the truth. Despite the information being freely available.
The group who claim they are “protesters” but tried to burn down a building, use Nazi symbols and repeat Nazi sayings.
They also attacked police officers, looted businesses and used violence against people they believed to be immigrants.
If you ask them the names of Children who died, most wouldn’t be able to name them but are using this incident as a “reason” for this.
Two Tier Policing?
Despite these people using violence they claim there’s two tier policing as their violence has been stopped numerous times by anti-racists across the country.
The Police have to be fair and have. They have allowed them to spit the vile language.
Those counter protesting them are seasoned protesters who know how to do what needs to be done in order to stop them. Gaining a geographical advantage is just one of these things.
Let’s make this a little local though…
Medway sees off the far right
In Medway, Stand Up To Racism which is a cross party group who have organised successful protests before stood outside the Medway Innovation Centre where they were planning on attacking.
The far right were using Nazi salutes and even video footage of them saying “Seig Heil” was going around the Internet both outside the Innovation Centre and before at Wickes Car Park.
Most of the far right who came were not from Medway while everyone in Stand Up To Racism was from Medway.
Nazi’s don’t like being called Nazi…
Cllr Shokar was berated online for using the term Nazi to describe them despite them using the same tactics, language and even movements of the Nazi Party in Germany.
Medway Stands United against racism (some hope)
Medway Stand Up To Racism did a street stall in Chatham.
Most people were really happy to see Stand Up To Racism in Chatham and they got all boxes filled in with people signed up to receive updates.
To put it in context, they were there for two hours before boxes were full.
It seems across the country people are standing up to these right wing thugs.
Remember to eat and drink. This might be hyperfocus time.
It’s Wednesday 7th August. A summers day. In previous days, rumours about protests were spreading across the Medway Towns.
One screenshot which was shared by the Green Party showed the far right we’re planning to destroy the Innovation Centre, particularly an organisation that deals with immigration.
Tuesday 6th August, we were sent a video that turned out to be unrelated. I attended Medway Stand Up To Racism counter protest zoom meeting where over 100 people had joined.
It was clear we needed a plan for the planned riots. We needed to show that this was not okay in Medway.
Back to the 7th August. The counter protest is planned and during the day, myself and Chloe head to The Pantry Cafe at Fort Amherst. After, I go to the Medway Stop Smoking Service as I’ve given up smoking to pick up a nicotine patch and have my CO2 levels read (I got a 1, definitely a non-smoker now).
Then, we popped into Pet Aqua to get my cats another toy. It’s now time for coffee (or a drink of some sort). We thought Nucleus Arts is a nice place to go. It’s closed and that’s where the mayhem starts. Someone also tried to steal Chloe’s dog she got who is a rescue.
All of us were receiving reports of rioting that was already happening. Reports about attacks on Mosques, a riot in Gillingham High Street and by Wickes in Chatham. Things were apparently set on fire. It was all too much as we started to investigate these.
I booked us an Uber back to good ol’ Rainham and asked the driver to go Chatham Hill way to check on the Mosque. No apparent attacks.
With the number of reports I was receiving, I posted some onto the Stand Up To Racism Group Chat in case we needed to quickly change plans.
We planned to go ahead as normal.
The amount of reports about Chatham Mosque, groups of people in Castle Road in Chatham ect. I called a friend who lives in Chatham who confirmed these to be false. He spent the evening with Muslim friends in their Mosque guarding them to help them feel safe as many people from Stand Up To Racism Medway also was doing.
Those of us attending to counter the racist vile these far right thugs spout were prepping. I met another protester outside the Innovation Centre at 6pm.
The police were already there.
Once everyone was there we started. Most of us are seasoned campaigners so know what we are doing (to a degree). Where we’d placed ourselves was perfect. It gave the police the excuse to hold the far right on the other side stopping them from causing any violence or damage.
We chanted. We debated. We got rightfully angry. We laughed. We went home knowing that once again, fascists were stopped. Medway residents had come together to stop the far right again.
I say again because we have a proud history in Medway of stopping the far right.
In 2014, we had to do the same thing during the Rochester & Strood by-election when far right group Britain First turned up. We stopped them then too.
Medway has a proud history.
How did we get here though, how did Britain become like this?
RØRY has shared a 15 second clip of a brand new song called “MORALITY $UICIDE” and the clip has had us in floods of tears – as it’s so true. In the video RØRY is wearing a costume with ‘Free Palestine’ and ‘Trans rights’.
The lyrics in the clip are:
“There’s people starving
Children dying in this madness
And politicians funding wars with people’s taxes
And they found oil
But they can’t find a cure for cancer
There’s profit in disaster”
This is set to be the most important song of our generation. Please pre-save it here.
RØRY is also nominated for a Just Text Me award. You can find more information on that here.
Update: RØRY releases new 15 second clip:
“Their enemies are refugees stood at the border
Big corporations putting poison in the water
Their up in arms when someone’s son becomes their daughter
Our three new MPs have voted to keep children in poverty.
Lauren Edwards, Naushabah Khan and Tristan Osborne voted to keep the two child cap on child benefits.
The Labour Party heavily whipped their MP’s meaning MP’s were threatened with punishment if they voted against the motion.
The Labour Party called out the Liberal Democrats for the coalition, heavily criticised theban and have said they wish to lift children out of poverty.
The reason the ban was implemented was because there was evidence of a surge in people having children to get the benefits. This led to children being abused and not looked after.
I’ve been openly critical over the scrapping of the two child ban however recently new information has come to my attention of the levels of child poverty are far beyond out of control.
The Lib Dems and Green Party had the scrap in their manifesto. The bill was introduced by the SNP.
Medway Liberal Democrats have faced what they claim an experience of “what it is to be a member of the trans community” after the Terfs came out in force.
Before we get on to the hatred, their letter was even seen by outspoken national journalist India Willoughby who thanked them.
Terfs out in force…
@JohnnyPReid clearly doesn’t read the news or understand the political system.
@Scattyjan clearly scatty with her fact checking as there’s no evidence and all big donations to political parties need to be declared.
@fharris2011 clearly doesn’t understand science or evidence based debates as he’s just stating what illiterate Terfs say, despite a lack in evidence of any harm for puberty blockers.
@WitchyMcWitch This figure of donation would have to be declared and it hasn’t. There is no evidence of donations from pharmaceutical companies to the Liberal Democrats. Just Text Me has investigated.
According to @HeadWarriorTWM Medway Lib Dems are dangerous. They only seem dangerous to people wanting to spout misinformation about the transgender community.
@AlGriff70062 doesn’t understand the difference between gender and sexuality. Noone wants to “sterilise” gay kids – people want rights fod TRANS KIDS. They exist. They deserve help.
@coccinellanovem doesn’t understand than trans people can also be attracted to the same gender and there is a difference between sexuality and gender.
There is more but this would be too long.
They got accused of being pedophiles, accused of sterilising kids ect. All conspiracy type comments.
There were some nice ones though.
The Labour Party have not shrouded themselves in glory around protecting trans rights.
They have allowed Terfs to enter and destroy their campaigning for the LGBTQ+ Community.
When you look at engagement figures for the tweet it is Medway Liberal Democrats biggest in engagement.
It does signal that while the Liberal Democrats and the Green Party have the same view on this, the Liberal Democrats are the party in Medway to lead on LGBTQ+ rights.
Medway Council have announced free bus fares for under 18’s on any bus in Medway with a fare paying adult or concessionary bus pass holder. Up to three children will be able to travel around Medway for free.
There is also a brand new bus service operated by Chalkwell and Nu-Venture linking the new Cozenton Park Sports Centre to The Strand, Medway Park and Riverside Country Park.
These will run every hour, seven days a week according to Medway Council.
More information on the new 200C Bus Service including a full timeltable can be found here.
Cllr Simon Curry, Photo: Medway Council
Cllr Simon Curry (Lab) Portfolio Holder for Climate Change says:
“It’s fantastic that we’re able to offer free bus travel for children this summer, and help more families get out and have fun around Medway. There are so many great destinations here and being able to get to them for free makes a day out easier and even more enjoyable. It’s also good news for businesses and leisure destinations over the summer holidays, and good news for the environment.”
Medway Green Party have written a letter to all three Medway MP’s on Palestine.
The letter is in support of the Palestinian people who have been abused by decades at the hands of the Israeli Government and calls on the Labour MP’s to rightly clarify their position.
October the 7th attacks on Israel by Hamas must be condemned too as with Hamas, however it is right to say that this started before the terror attacks on Israel.
Palestinians have been suffering for decades to almost a complete media silence.
Medway Greens have been the only party in Medway to be open about supporting Palestine and have been part of the Palestinian Solidarity Campaign run by Matthew Broadley and other members to raise awareness of the issue.
Open letter posted on social media by Medway Liberal Democrats
Medway Liberal Democrats are the first Medway party to actively campaign against the attack on Transgender young people by the new Labour Government.
The Green Party were the first to make their position clear but Medway Liberal Democrats have written an open letter to all three Medway Labour MPs.
The letter reads:
“We are writing to you concerning the recent comments by Health Secretary Wes Streeting, saying he would place a permanent ban on puberty blockers for trans children in England and Wales.”
It goes on to say “We are deeply concerned about the political interference of what should be a personal decision between a patient and trained medical professionals. Sensitive healthcare decisions are profoundly personal and are best taken on an individual basis, with appropriate professional support. It should not be done by the whim of a politician. It is confusing and deeply distressing to individuals already going through a difficult process.”
They add why they are concerned “We are also concerned that the Health Secretary has provided no scientific evidence behind his decision, and appears to be solely a personal preference.”
They state facts “Pubety blockers have been used since they were invented in the 1950s and have been widely used in trans healthcare since the 1980s. They are reversible and allow children the time and space to understand their feelings before they stop taking them or medically transition.”
They then addtheir concerns about welfare “This decision would seriously damage the mental health of trans youth. Evidence shows that the majority of trans people in the UK have considered suicide. By removing the emotional safety-net that puberty blockers provide young trans people, it risks then pushing them towards taking their own lives.”
They close with their call to action for our new MP’s “The Liberal Democrats have a proud history of defending LGBT+ rights, leading the charge for gay marriage and the repeal of Section 28. During these campaigns we have worked alongside the Labour Party to achieve them. We are asking once again to work with us and the LGBT+ community to protect the lives of trans children in the UK. Please join other Labour MPs and publicly speak out against Wes Streeting’s decision, and demand he provides the evidence is used to base his decision on.”
Each new MP will be asked for their comments regarding this story.
The new Labour government have started off their first week with an attack on trans young people.
Wes Streeting, minister for health has said the government want to ban puberty blockers for trans teens.
The reality is puberty blockers are extremely hard to get for transgender teenagers and they can only get them once going through intense therapy to make sure they are in the right head space and they aren’t ‘confused’ about who they are.
It is not a new proposal from Labour however does show how much they have taken from the debate about trans rights and exactly who they are listening to about this issue. Transgender young people and journalists have spoken up about this on X.
Rebecca Jones tweet
Rebecca Jones, National Young Liberals Policy Officer who openly transitioned as a child posted on ‘X’
“Your weekly reminder that Labour are not on the side of LGBTQ+ people.”
She continued in another tweet
“I muted this thread basically the moment I posted it fyi. I don’t care what anti-trans people think.
Forcing a trans child to go through the wrong puberty by banning PBs is abhorrent.
Signed: Someone who transitioned as a teenager.
#TransKidsMatter”
India Willoughby a transgender journalist has also spoken out
India Willoughby screenshot
She too, also posted on X
“This is such rubbish. Puberty blockers – or GnRH agonists to give them their proper name – are not dangerous. Or life-altering. It’s industrialised Right Wing media disinformation. I took them for a few years. Most trans do, regardless of age. Smarties.”
This has come about due to the CASS report on it which multiple groups have said they have ‘grave concerns’ after it was discovered to only look at one side of the debate on this issue.
National Young Liberals say that the Liberal Democrats will always “stand with
Young Liberals Screenshot
Shae Coffey, one of the founders of Medway Pride has been open about her views on the topic by retweeting Billy Bragg.
Medway Greens were the first party to speak out on the issue having retweeted their national leaders tweet.
We call on more political parties in Medway to speak out for the transgender and non-binary community in Medway.When they do, this blog will be updated.
It’s been a huge time for politics in Medway. Three new Labour MP’s.
Naushabah Khan in Gillingham & Rainham
Tristan Osborne in Chatham & Aylesford
Lauren Edwards in Rochester & Strood
Reform UK also did well coming in second place in Rochester & Strood and third place in Gillingham & Rainham and in Chatham & Aylesford.
The Green Party managed to keep all their election deposits while the Liberal Democrats kept two deposits out of three with the Green Party now formally ahead of the Liberal Democrats in both Local and Parliamentary elections in Medway.
Medway Liberal Democrats aren’t going to take this lying down, continuing to be an opposition party with community champions who are already fighting the Labour administration on key issues such as Chatham Docks.
Fort Horsted and St Mary’s Island definitely seem really good for them.
Reform UK has the potential to make waves at Local Elections taking from both the Labour Party and the Conservatives. Providing they don’t lose momentum in the meantime.
All other parties and independents lost all of their deposits at the General Election.
The Conservatives continue to lose when it comes to Medway and I think they need to re-group and re-focus instead of using scare tactics and negativity. They definitely need a refocus or they will eventually become extinct in the Medway Towns.
Tristan Osborne MP:
Writing ‘MP’ after Tris’ name gives me some personally a friendly joy. Before I was in the current party I am now, I was in the same party as Tris Osborne and was vice-chair of the branch he was a councillor for at the time.
Having campaigned with Tris I definitely know how hard he works and the both of us have stories of campaigning to share that one day might make public (2am, is all I’ll say on that for now).
Whilst it was a marginal victory, Tris has the opportunity now to show Chatham & Aylesford why they should continue to vote for him.
Kelly Tolhurst:
Slightly disappointed to see her lose her seat, particularly when Rochester & Strood have had an MP that does campaign for them including on saving Chatham Docks (which is in the Rochester & Strood constituency).
Kelly has been constantly campaigning and didn’t deserve to lose however her party let her down.
Cabinet Changes
All three Medway MP’s were members of the cabinet. In order to start their duties as Members of Parliament they have resigned from their cabinet positions.
Cllr Harinder Mahil becomes portfolio holder for economic and social regeneration and inward investment.
Cllr Nina Gurung takes over as the portfolio holder for heritage, culture and leisure.
Cllr Alex Paterson is the portfolio holder for community safety, highways and enforcement.
Cllr Louwella Prenter is the portfolio holder for housing and homelessness.
This is likely to change every single election as we are not associated with any political party.
In this election we are endorsing the Conservative candidate Kelly Tolhurst in Rochester & Strood.
Kelly has worked hard as an MP and her ongoing fight for saving Chatham Docks is really inspiring. We are pleased to lend an official endorsement to Kelly this election.
This is likely to change every single election as we are not associated with any political party.
In this election we are endorsing the Labour Party candidate Tristan Osborne in Chatham & Aylesford.
Tris has worked hard as the community safety portfolio holder and used to be a councillor in Luton & Wayfield. We are pleased to offer him our endorsement at this election.
This is a long and interesting read so please remember to stay hydrated.
Chris Spalding is an Independent Medway Councillor and a floating voter. He has voted in every election he could apart from one when military duties prevented this. In the past he was voted Conservative, Green, Labour, Liberal Democrat and, on one occasion Monster Raving Looney Party. Here he takes a look at Gillingham and Rainham where he has a vote.
Opinion piece by Independent Cllr Chris Spalding
For the older generation among us, “None of the above” is a phrase more readily associated with the 1985 film Brewster’s Millions starring Richard Pryor and Jon Candy
Looking at the candidates in Gillingham and Rainham it is perhaps hard not to disagree.
Rehman Chishti (Conservative)
The current MP, who has still not worked out his massive majority in 2019 was down to people wanting a Boris led government as opposed to Labour under Jeremy Corbyn is a regular on social media with self promotion pictures of himself.
It is said he would attend the opening of an envelope if there was a phot opportunity involved. Many of these phots are of so called regular street surgeries where Rehman takes up issues on behalf of constituents. The fact these events are never publicized in advance so those actually needing to speak their MP can attend is beside the point.
Many complain of contacting him and not even getting a reply. I am among that number. I had hoped to speak to Reh about this issue at the recent D-Day 80 commemoration, but he pushed past me saying “Quick Kelly. Let’s get a phot of us in from of HMS Cavalier”. This just about sums up the bloke!
He delighted when made a minister, but even then, did not realise he only got the job because the PM had run out of other people. This apparent self delusion led him to run for leadership of the Conservative party where he ended up with one vote (His own).
The crowning moment of self exaggeration was his announcement he had joined the Army Reserves and held a ‘special commission’. A claim he has continued to promote time and again and recently in his election leaflets. +
Unfortunately for Reh or should I say Walter Mitty, his own declaration of interests show he ‘served’ about two and half hours or about enough time to collect a uniform and post a picture. This ‘stolen valour’ will cost him and indeed the other conservative candidates in Medway, with many veterans and serving personnel who would normally vote Tory, vowing not to vote or opting for another candidate. Hopefully this election will see him demobilized.
Will I be voting for Rehman Chishti? Not a chance!
Naushabah Khan (Labour)
A local Councillor of many years in a safe Labour ward, Naushabah Khan has gained significant experience in the world of politics and was one of those credited with directing the Labour victory in last year’s local elections.
Her reward was a place at the cabinet table as portfolio holder for Housing and property, a role which includes travellers. It is this latter responsibility that could prove most troublesome given the frequent ‘problems’ these visitors bring particularly to areas like Twydall. As portfolio holder her ineffectiveness in dealing with what is an annual issue and finding a permanent solution could haunt her campaign save for the fact opponents have failed to capitalize on it.
Another negative factor will be Medway Labour’s apparent U-Turn on Chatham Docks. In opposition, Naushabah and colleagues were vehemently opposed to the closure of the Docks and plans to build thousands of houses thereon. Now holding the reins of power things have changed with a recent planning application by Peel Ports succeeding. Once again, her opponents have failed to highlight the apparent double standard and contradictions.
Expected to win the contest, it will be third time lucky for Naushabah whose previous attempts to enter parliament ended in dismal failure where she has come a rather pathetic third behind UKIP and Conservative.
It is also third time lucky in finding a parliamentary seat to contest in this election. Having previously been rejected by Stevenage and Peterborough she finally was selected for her home constituency. Given her previous attempts at election and the fact she looked elsewhere before landing the local nomination suggest she falls into the category of “I just want to be an MP”. The fact that voters in Gillingham and Rainham were not her first or even second choice should not affect the vote because this election is a reversal of 2019 when people voted for whoever was not Jeremy Corbyn. This time it is whoever is not Conservative.
With nomination secured she apparently took inspiration from the incumbent and photos of Naushabah attending Gillingham FC matches began appearing.
She and others were out canvassing early on, well before the elections was called. If hard work was the sole requisite for victory, she would romp home, but it is clear she is taking nothing for granted.
From experience, I know you can have a sensible conversation and exchange of views with Naushabah, and she will listen. With all the experience she has gained over the years I think, if elected, she will realise she is getting the opportunity not because of who she is, but because people do not want the Conservative candidate, and she will work hard to establish herself as a constituency MP.
Will she get my vote? Maybe
Stuart Bourne (Liberal Democrats)
Stuey is a general all round nice guy but saddled with membership of a party who is not expected to do very much round here. No stranger to elections this is however, his first parliamentary foray. Previously a Labour council candidate most recently he stood as a LibDem in Rainham North where despite putting in loads of work he and his colleagues found themselves in the bottom half of the results table. Claiming afterwards they had not expected to do much damaged their credibility as many took a different view.
The local campaign has concentrated on sewage and bashing the Conservatives and the local MP on social media. Sensibly when campaigning they have chosen council wards they consider targets for the future.
Another fervent Gills supporter his other main passion is potholes and a yellow plastic duck called Libby!
Getting my vote? Sorry Stuey
Rizvi Rawoof (Reform UK)
Obtained the nomination months ago and then did nothing, suggesting as many thought at the time, Reform UK was nothing more that Richard Tice’s vanity project. Even if you lack the funding of a big party a few thousand leaflets does not cost much nor does spending a couple of hours knocking on doors a few evenings or on a Saturday morning.
Rizvi failed to attend one hustings despite agreeing to attend and has been pretty invisible campaign wise.
Getting my vote? Er No!
Kate Belmonte (Green)
Eco warrior Kate is no stranger to the political seen in Medway and has successfully campaigned against housing development in Rainham. Credibility took a knock when she and other Green candidates locally had to crowd fund to raise the deposit. That said she has managed to steer what little campaigning done away from the elephant in the room which is the admission into the Green party of many Corbynista extremists that even the Libdems would not accept!
The result is the Greens now care more about Gaza than they do about grass!
Will attract votes from disaffected sections of Labour but my vote? Not a hope.
Peter Wheeler (SDP)
For a hitherto unknown (Yes, I know he got 58 votes in the Council election in 2023 in Hempstead and Wigmore), Peter came across very well at the Gillingham and Rainham hustings. Sufficiently prepared and knowledgeable about his party policies and positions he debated sensibly and came across well. Well enough for me, and apparently others I understand to take a look at the SDP in greater detail.
Could he get my vote? Quite possibly especially if it helps him save his deposit.
Peter Cook (Independent)
Yet again out and about giving independents a bad name. Campaign as a cat complete with toy cat as a prop. Apparently intent on Brexit rage and bad mouthing anybody he thinks he may get some applause for. There has to be cheaper and more cost effective ways of saying look at me. I just hope he find some soon. As for the question, not even bothering to ask it!
Roger Peacock (Christian Peoples Alliance)
A genuine person standing for the second time for what he believes in. Nothing more to say and may attract some protest/sympathy votes but not mine.
Medway Labour Leader and Leader of Medway Council Vince Maple has written to the postal service to prioritise postal votes.
Thousands of postal votes across the country have been delayed and may not reach people in time for them to post their ballot.
Vince Maple (Lab) has written to Royal Mail.
Thirteen council areas have been affected and Medway is one of them.
The thing we can suggest at Just Text Me is, if you haven’t received a postal vote just yet, please make sure you take your postal vote to the polling station as you can do that but please make sure you bring Photo ID with you.
This can be down to electoral services not having enough time. This is why any Prime Minister should absolutely give further notice of election campaigns.
Make sure you post your ballot by 3pm tomorrow (1st July) or hand it in at a polling station on July 4th and bring Photo ID with you.
This election has been full of racist vile, mainly spewed by Reform UK candidates, voters and campaigners. Naushabah Khan, the Labour candidate for Gillingham & Rainham has faced this on a very personal level.
This is fully unacceptable and Naushabah has been working very hard as a councillor for Gillingham South and is now the portfolio holder for Housing Services on Medway Council.
If anyone deserves to win, Naushabah certainly has proven she deserves it.
Unlike the MP we have had in Gillingham & Rainham for the last 14 years who is well known for ignoring residents unless you support him and only turning up for events if he gets a photo opportunity out of it, Naushabah is the direct opposite of that.
It’s no secret that I’m a member of another political party but when I lived in Gillingham South briefly, even knowing this, she still helped with casework I had given to her. This was a few years back now, but this is the kind of politics that we need. Someone who works very hard.
Reform UK are proving to be divisive in politics and extremely dangerous. Obviously we don’t know who this person votes for but Reform UK sits within their reach.
Racism must be condemned by all parties and is certainly not deserved.
We want to say that we are not party political but we condemn any racism and it must be stamped out in politics.
We stand with you Naushabah and you winning on the 4th July will really stick it to that racist scum and will give Gillingham & Rainham and MP we deserve, someone who can and does work hard.
This is a long read, please keep hydrated. This also focuses on our predictions for General Election results.
This is it. Only a couple of days left and on the end of this we’ll reveal our plans for the count.
Let’s take a look at the main parties:
Labour:
Still, impressed with their campaign, even Angel Rayner paid a visit to Rochester & Strood.
If you are planning on tactical voting, in Gillingham & Rainham and Rochester & Strood they look set to win by big swings, so vote for whomever you feel comfortable.
We disagree with tactical voting but Chatham & Aylesford is where anyone voting tactically should. While the polls indicate a Labour win, it’s a very small margin.
Conservative:
Gillingham & Rainham candidate has had an allegation by Local Authority. More about that further down.
Chatham & Aylesford, they are putting signs up on the wrong side of the road in places but it kind of makes sense as residents can still see it and I doubt they’ll have to declare that as an expense.
Rochester & Strood, Kelly Tolhurst is actually running an impressive campaign. She’s not going down without a fight and proving she is an avid campaigner. She’s really gone hard on Medway Labour and attacked them for breaking promises on Chatham Docks.
Liberal Democrats:
The Lib Dems aren’t going to win and look set to loose deposits in two constituencies according to the polls.
There nothing really constituency related to report and it absolutely makes sense what they are doing.
Looking to the local elections, they are absolutely carpet bombing, knocking on doors in St Mary’s Island and Fort Horsted while, at the weekend having been on tour to help out friends in seats the Lib Dems can win such as Tunbridge Wells in Kent and Carshalton & Wallington in Surrey.
There was some media things that need to be fact checked but again, we’ll come on to that later.
Green Party:
Again, nothing to report constituency wise. The Green Party have been making a lot of statements on social media that have been popular with local residents however trust in the Green Party is quite low.
Others:
Nothing to report.
Has local journalism really reached a new low?
Local Authority appear to have made a bit of an error of reporting according some local politicos with this news story.
Lib Dem allegations:
In the article, Local Authority accused Medway Liberal Democrats of delivering the wrong leaflets. It was actually Royal Mail who were delivering the leaflets and they were using the old constituency map where Fort Horsted ward was in Rochester & Strood. This mistake has been acknowledged by Royal Mail and Medway Liberal Democrats released a statement on their social media.
Medway Lib Dems said:
“We would like to apologise to some residents who received the incorrect leaflet from us. Royal Mail accepted that this was their fault, they were using the old boundary map, and promised to immediately deliver the correct leaflet.
We’re sorry for any confusion.”
Rehman Chishti allegations:
In the article they accused Rehman Chishti of breaking electoral law with his website. We’ll just have to see if this is true or not as we are not trained in law.
There are no current investigations that we are aware of surrounding this and Rehman Chishti has been silent on this.
Conclusion:
Some people feel that the article in question reads like a Labour squeeze message however, to point out, so can ours at times, especially when we’ve been open about being impressed with their campaign.
Local Authority, might be a kind of rival (I guess), I personally enjoy most of their writing and they work very hard around election times organising fantastic Hustings Events.
Remember people are people, humans get burnt out and I really do hope Ed and Steve are taking time out to look after themselves. Your mental well-being is far more important.
I do have to agree though, that the article did intentionally make certain parties or individuals look bad, whether intentional or not, journalism cannot be biased during an election period and their words and exaggeration of the truth with the Lib Dems, did seem a tad “Daily Mail esq” to us.
They haven’t, as of writing this commented on the statement nor shown the statement from Medway Liberal Democrats.
I do think though, and I’m not in anyway defending them but their writing in the article does make it seem like they are overly tired and overworked, which is why I bought the mental health part up.
This is an anomaly from Local Authority, as I said previously, if you are a local politico, they do write some fantastic pieces.
What we will be doing at the count…
Chloe will be attending the count and updating a live blog as well as interviewing candidates, and local politicians.
Fun videos may be filmed too!
Unless there is any need, there will be no further blogs until the 4th July at the count. After the 6th July, news as usual about all kinds of issues.
The prediction polls are interesting so let’s take a look.
Remember every party has paid a £500 deposit and they lose that if they don’t get 5% of the vote share.
Gillingham & Rainham
MRP Latest prediction poll for Gillingham & Rainham
Results (in order)
Labour: 44.7%
Conservative: 23.8%
Reform UK: 23.1%
Green Party: 4.4%
Liberal Democrats: 4%
Others: 0.1%
This result sees the Green Party overtake the Lib Dems however only the top three parties keep their deposits. Lib Dems, Greens and every other candidate are set to lose their deposit.
Chatham & Aylesford
Chatham & Aylesford MRP Poll
Results (in order):
Labour: 36.5%
Conservative: 30.9%
Reform UK: 19.1%
Liberal Democrats: 7.4%
Green Party: 5.9%
Other: 0.3%
This shows another Labour win. It also shows that all major parties keep their deposits in this constituency.
Rochester & Strood
Rochester & Strood MRP
Results (in order):
Labour: 43.9%
Reform UK: 27.9%
Conservative: 19.3%
Green Party: 4.5%
Liberal Democrat: 4.1%
Others: 0.2%
This is an interesting result that sees Reform UK take second place. Lib Dems and Greens both lose their deposits again.
Overall Medway Analysis
Liberal Democrats and the Green Party set to lose £1000. This is a huge hit for smaller parties.
Reform UK splitting the Tory vote is certainly helping Labour win two sizable majorities and one just scraping by.
Thanks to Reform UK splitting the Tory vote,tactical voting is not needed in Gillingham & Rainham or Rochester & Strood so we’d strongly suggest if you like the Lib Dems or the Green Party above Labour, please vote for them, they could use your support.
UK Analysis Overall
MRP National Predictions
Results by seat in order:
Labour: 450
Liberal Democrats: 70
Conservatives: 61
SNP: 23
Reform UK: 19
Green Party: 4
Plaid Cymru: 4
This would see the Liberal Democrats become the official opposition in the House of Commons.
This is a long article so please make sure you keep hydrated
It’s been a while since we posted an update on the state of the general election. Please note this is an opinion/observation of what the team have seen online and through letterboxes. We’ll be looking at the main parties and then some individual candidates, but before, let’s look at the Hustings events.
Hustings Events:
Local Authority do really well with Hustings events and I attended the Gillingham & Rainham one at St Margarets Church as a resident. It was well-run, well-handled and mostly well-spirited.
At the Gillingham & Rainham Hustings my personal favorite comment came from Kate Belmonte, Green Party candidate who called out the Christian Peoples Party candidate for repeating “we are a Christian country” many times. Kate called them out and pointed out we are a multicultural society.
The Labour Party came in droves but we are really impressed with all three campaigns they are running but we will get to that in a moment.
Naushabah though, answered the questions fully and the audience seemed to be with her.
The Lib Dems at the Hustings – did really well, Stuart Bourne was applauded on everything he said and looked like a real community champion.
Peter Cook who is standing his cat, used it as an opportunity to gain voters who were not voting for Labour. Peter, once again is talking about Brexit and used his position to mock Reform UK and Nigel Farage.
Reform and Conservatives didn’t show up.
The Christian Peoples Party seemed to have the audience some of the time but would loose them alot.
The Campaigns:
Conservative – In all three constituencies have been doing films, not attending Hustings events and appear to have given up. Kelly Tolhurst does appear to be working harder than the Rehman Chishti or Nathan Gamester.
Nathan released a video with captions that looked “poser” style cool but not very seeable from a neurodiverse perspective.
Labour – They have stepped up the game in all three constituencies and are looking like a fully functioning winning party.
The Just Text Me office based in Gillingham & Rainham at my flat, have absolutely been carpet-bombed with leaflets and we are so impressed with their campaign.
They are gaining ground in Rochester & Strood and Chatham & Aylesford aswell. I genuinely believe they will win all three Medway constituencies.
Lib Dems – The Lib Dems have been out canvassing in Fort Horsted and St Mary’s Island with a clear target on winning those seats in the next general election. In Gillingham & Rainham, we have received a leaflet by Royal Mail which shows they are at least looking like a future-winning party if they can get the ground back in Medway at some point, particularly where they used to have councillors.
Green Party – The Green Party have been focussing on an area in Rochester & Strood that they would most definitely win next election, given they came within 8 votes of winning the seat.
Reform UK – Have accused Labour supporters of vandalising windows, yet ignoring people trying to get more information and confirm the story. They have also been giving out leaflets in Gillingham & Rainham that do not have the agents name on the political imprint, so need to be careful this isn’t reported to the police.
Social Democratic Party – Whilst they haven’t really been campaigning, they certainly have caused a little stir when they suggested that English & Welsh were the only languages to be given out in hospitals. This has the potential to cost the NHS as some people might not understand and as a result have further complications.
Peter Cook – Certainly hanging out leaflets and bringing the comedy element to the campaign with his anti-Brexit gaffes and his cat.
Christian Peoples Alliance – Unsure of what they’ve been doing as they tend to go off the radar a little bit.
Poll predictions:
We have seen many poll predictions but the only poll that matters is the one that will take place on July 4th 2024.
The Green Party Manifesto has so decent stuff in ithowever it also has some incredibly dangerous stuff.
Main points for us we want to note:
They want to scrap our nuclear weapons. This could leave the UK open to intimidation by countries such as Russia.
They want to give support to pedophiles. Now, this was a tricky one for us to read and get our head around but they believe giving pedophiles support could stop them offending. It’s a bit more complicated than anything we can summarise so for full context please read their manifesto.
Environmental policies are practically the same as Labour and the Lib Dems however there’s no guarantee that they would build social housing as the Green Party typically oppose all development and not to mind the issues with Green Party councils opposing windfarms and solar farms.
They want to end the two child cap on child benefits, this is the same as the Lib Dems. The Greens and the Lib Dems are the only parties so far to mention this in their manifesto.
They want to nationalise almost everything. It’s very socialistic.
The Green Party are pro-immigration. Only two parties so far have spoken positively about immigration.
On LGBTQ+ Issues they are backing the trans-inclusive ban on conversation therapies.
Labour look pretty set to win an outright majority in the general election but what will the difference between the Conservatives be? Let’sfind out.
LGBTQ+ Rights
On LGBTQ+ Rights they want a trans-inclusive ban on the conversion therapy, a policy similar to that of the Liberal Democrats and the Green Party. They fail to go as far on LGBTQ+ rights as other parties and the word ‘non-binary’ is missing from their manifesto.
Labour have also insisted on appeasing the transphobes by saying they will implement single-sex-only spaces.
Crime:
Their emphasis on violence against women’s and girls, seems to underestimate the amount of other genders who also experience violence and abuse. It seems Labour are continuing to genderise abuse which is actually an insult to those who have been abused.
Environment:
The environment policy is actually pretty good but overly ambitious. Under 14 years of the Conservatives, our environment has not been a priority so to aim for net-zero by 2030 is ambitious but now not doable unfortunately. Add another five years to that and it’s certainly doable. It is nice to see at least one of the two major parties have a decent environment policy.
Immigration:
Much the same as the Conservatives. Conservatives want to send Refugees to Rwanda, Labour want to treat them as terrorists.
Benefits:
Reads the same as Rishi Sunak saying there’s a “sick note culture” in the UK, by emphasising “back into work” instead of improving disability benefits.
Questions left from the manifesto?
Where are they on welfare?
Do they want to change PIP?
Have they dropped their pledge to allow 16&17 year olds a right to vote?
The Labour Party have made a grave error on TikTok that could see the party being cancelled ahead of them winning a majority.
Their team running their TikTok account did a “meme” of Rishi Sunak, jokingly claiming he had a “breakdown” while writing the Conservative manifesto.
These pictures show the meme posted by the UK’s Labour Party.
Whilst those with mental health struggles joke often about mental health issues to cope, a major political party using mental health to mock the opposition is not something that shows the lack of understanding regarding mental health issues in the Labour Party.
No word from our local Labour Party on the “joke”.
This is not the first time Kier Starmer has come under fire for using mental health as joke. Towards the end of 2023 he used the term “psychodrama” to describe the current Tory government, terminology that didn’t go down well with the mental health community considering a therapy session called “psychodrama” is actually used to help people who struggle with personality disorders.
If Medway Labour decide to comment on this, we will of course update the blog.
The Liberal Democrats were the first of the ‘larger’ parties to unleash their vision for our country. We have broken it down, but first, let’s take a look at what the party, the candidates and the local activists are saying about it.
Medway Liberal Democrats released an official statement regarding the manifesto launch. So, what do the local party say?
“The bold plan to save the country’s health services includes:
– Giving everyone the right to see a GP within seven days, or within 24 hours if they urgently need to, with 8,000 more GPs to deliver on it.
– Guarantee access to an NHS dentist for everyone needing urgent and emergency care, ending DIY dentistry and ‘dental deserts’.
– Boost cancer survival rates and introduce a guarantee for 100% of patients to start treatment for cancer within 62 days from urgent referral.” That’s what the party have said in their press release.
The candidates:
Graham Colley, Liberal Democrat candidate for Rochester and Strood
Graham Colley (Rochester and Strood)
“Families and pensioners across Medway are fed up with being taken for granted by the Conservative Party. Every vote for the Liberal Democrats at this election is a vote to elect a strong local champion who will fight every day for our NHS and care. People desperately want change, from fixing our health and care services to returning to proper community policing the Liberal Democrats have a plan to make our community a better place. The Liberal Democrats are fighting for local people and giving communities the change they want.”
Stuart Bourne, Liberal Democrat Candidate for Gillingham and Rainham
Stuart Bourne (Gillingham & Rainham)
“I’m standing to ensure that our next generation gets the same opportunities that I and others have enjoyed, including the chance to breathe the same clean air, buy a home, or have a rewarding and interesting job. The current Tory government has failed to do this on all counts, and change is needed now. Families and pensioners across Medway are fed up with being taken for granted by the Conservative Party. The Liberal Democrats are fighting for local people and giving communities the change they want.”
Nicholas Chan, Liberal Democrat candidate for Chatham and Aylesford
“NHS staff and care workers are vital in helping with my father-in-law after his stroke. Urgent medical response is essential for stroke patients and they can recover well with social care. That is why, families and myself want to deliver on this manifesto where families have a choice to decide on the social care they need, be in control of their care rehabilitation plans and support healthcare workers with the respect which they deserves. The Liberal Democrats are fighting for local people and giving communities the change they want.”
Local activists
Onyx Rist a local activist described the manifesto as “in-tune” with their beliefs but also critised two parts, scrapping the child benefit cap and taxing sugary drinks.
The response conclusion:
It takes a while to scroll down before any criticism of the Labour Party. It seems the Lib Dems seem to forget Labour are actually in charge of Medway Council and there should be criticism towards them too.
What are the policies?
Include non-binary individuals as a recognised gender
The Lib Dems need to spend more time critiquing other parties and showing a clear distinction between them and Labour if voters are to see them as a different choice.
It’s unlikely they will gain any MPs across Medway but if they are serious about keeping their deposit, they might need a clearer distinction.
Might be a long one so grab a drink as we’re going to take a deep dive into the statsbased off a poll by Redfield and Witton 5th – 6th June.
Now before we get in, these are likely to change and fluctuate between now and the actual general election.
If these were released, even a couple of months ago I’d laugh them off.
Why polling percentage leads do not matter?
In a world of First Past The Post electoral system, percentages don’t really matter unless they are done on a constituency level.
Someone could be leading by percentage and that not translate into any seats at all.
So what’s the polling percentage? (Redfield and Witton)
🌹 Labour (-4) 42%
🌳Conservative (-1) 19%
➡️ Reform UK (+3) 17%
🔶 Liberal Democrat (+2) 12%
🟢 Green (+1) 6%
🟡 SNP (+1) 3%
How will this translate into seats?
🌹 Labour – 495
🔶 Liberal Democrat – 76
🌳Conservative – 40
🟡 SNP – 13
🟢 Green – 2
Consequences:
Pushing the Lib Dems into second place signals a major change in our political system. It means the Lib Dems would need to start looking like a government in waiting and definitely not form coalitions.
This may also see careerists in the Conservative jump ship to Labour or the Lib Dems.
The Conservatives have released a press release about Medway Labour’s broken promise – our article on this when the story broke is here.
It might be due to rushing to get a candidate in Chatham & Aylesford.
Anyways, we get a response from Cllr Lawrence on the issue who says:
“I am very sorry for those workers that are going to lose their jobs and I call on the Council to provide all necessary support to ensure that as many of the skills are retained in our local economy.
I am not surprised by Medway Labour and Co-Operative Group’s treachery as they continue to row back on previous promises made to residents on this matter.
It is clear that residents should not believe any promise made by Medway Labour.”
Kelly Tolhurst (Con), Parliamentary Candidate for Rochester & Strood aswell as Medway Lib Dems have been staunchly trying to stop this development. Medway Greens were also at one of the protests.
Kelly, in her work as an MP, raised the issue in parliament and with ministers.
I am very sorry for those workers that are going to lose their jobs and I call on the Council to provide all necessary support to ensure that as many of the skills are retained in our local economy.
I am not surprised by Medway Labour and Co-Operative Group’s treachery as they continue to row back on previous promises made to residents on this matter.
It is clear that residents should not believe any promise made by Medway Labour.”
In this election, we are hearing a lot about “tactical voting” from all political sides. Whether it’s Labour and the Tories in Medway, Lib Dems in Tunbridge Wells, Greens in Brighton, wherever, tactical voting is a lie.
Just Text Me firmly believe that you should vote for who you really believe in morally. Be it, Lib Dem, Green, Labour, Conservative, Reform UK or any other. No party should be handing out vote tactically leaflets.
The saving grace with the Lib Dems and the Greens is the fact that they have actively been campaigning for Proportional Representation for years and to be honest, with Reform UK, haven’t actually ran any tactical vote campaign to my knowledge (however this could be down to lacking in data to do that).
We are non-party political as an organisation here at Just Text Me however, we do all hold views that asking people to “vote tactically” defeats the point of campaigning for Proportional Representation.
Labour in 2019 were part of the fight for Proportional Representation but Starmer doesn’t like it and to be honest, it feels like self-preservation and selfishness from Starmer.
We’ve already seen his authoritarian tactics and unfair purge on his own members and MPs.
That might give us an indication of what’s to come.
Let’s be clear, the political world is changing.
If both major parties have a drop in vote share and allow smaller parties to come up, and increase vote share, they can be held to account and maybe things might change but it’s not going to all the while everyone continues the “vote tactically” argument.
Please do not fall for “vote tactically” tactics. Please vote for whoever you wish to.
Residents reminded about general election deadlines and photo ID rules
The general election is taking place on Thursday, 4 July.
In order to vote in the election, residents must register to vote before the deadline on Tuesday, 18 June at 11.59pm.
Voter ID Residents are reminded that in order to vote at a polling station they will need to bring accepted photo ID with them to be able to vote.
A wide range of photo IDs will be accepted, including:
passports, driving licences, and certain concessionary travel cards. The full list of acceptable photo IDs can be found on the Electoral Commission’s website.
Even if the photo ID document is out of date it can still be used, as long as the photograph is still a good likeness of the voter.
Anyone who doesn’t have one of the accepted forms of photo ID, or isn’t sure that their photo still looks like them, is encouraged to apply for a free ID document called a Voter Authority Certificate.
The deadline to apply for the free ID is 5pm on Wednesday 26th June 2024. Applicants must be registered to vote, and will need to provide their date of birth, National Insurance number, and a photograph with their application.
To apply residents can visit the government website or download a paper application form, which should be returned to: Medway Council, Electoral Services, Gun Wharf, Dock Road, Chatham, ME4 4TR. If residents need help filling out the paper appl ication form they can call 01634 332099.
Proxy Votes The requirement to show an accepted photo ID at a polling station includes residents who will be using a proxy vote.
A proxy vote is when you nominate someone you trust to vote on your behalf. For proxy votes, the person voting on your behalf will need to show their accepted photo ID at the polling station.
The deadline to apply for a proxy vote is 5pm on Wednesday, 26 June.
Postal votes Residents can also choose to apply for a postal vote. The deadline to apply for a postal vote is 5pm on Wednesday, 19 June.
You should receive your postal ballot papers around five days before election day. You must return your postal vote pack by no later than 10pm on election day (Thursday, 4 July).
If you forget to return your postal vote pack, you can drop it off at your local polling station or our Gun Wharf office on election day before 10pm. You will be required to complete a form confirming your name, address and how many completed postal votes you are handing in.
Protest to save Chatham Docks at St George’s Centre
This is now a long article: so please grab a drink, something to eat and prepare for a hyperfocus…
Medway Labour promised to save Chatham Dockyard for residential development during their election campaign last year and the Medway Labour LeaderVince Maple had a “Save Chatham Docks” poster on his window.
Tonight Medway Council voted to approve the decision however thanks to Kelly Tolhurst (con) parliamentary candidate for Rochester & Strood it will be a decision taken by central government.
At the last protest, Chloe interviewed Kelly and you can see that here:
Along with the Converatives at the protest was the Liberal Democrats. The Green Party weren’t seen today though but they were at the last protest.
Kelly Tolhurst (Con) has dedicated her time to this cause.
On the other side of the debate, as was pointed out by some that Medway Labour promised to save Chatham Docks from development if elected.
Tonight, they have broken that promise.
It was pointed out that the planning committee must not take any political decisions however Labour should have never promised that as they would have known it was the case.
Cllr Habib Tejan (Con) councillor for St Mary’s Island said that this decision should not be taken in a “politically charged moment of a General Election” – that might end up being advice the Labour Party might want to take on in the future.
Cllr Tejan also pointed out in his speech that this affects 800 families who will lose their source of income should the development be allowed to go ahead.
Members sitting in the public gallery also couldn’t be contained as Labour faces jeer, after jeer from the public. The Conservatives, however got a round of applause every time they spoke – this might be a brief relief for them in the coming months.
This could see Labour, rightly, lose all the work they have put in to their election campaign so far.
Medway Labour laughing at workers
Kelly Tolhurst accused a Labour Councilor for Strood of laughing at the decision to end 800 jobs.
Cllr David Field (Lab) the councillor for Strood North & Frindsbury replied to the allegation of laughing saying:
“To clarify I was not laughing at the content. We consider matters dutifully as set out by the chief planning officer.
There was an issue with the volume where we were that meant the output was overbearing.”
Responses from parties
Medway Liberal Democrats said “The economic consequences of this decision are hard to estimate, as now we are moving into a future with a large quantity of unknown factors that leaves the future of the commercial dockyard in the balance.”
They added “Councillors were presented with clear reasons to refuse. In addition, there was a significant presence from dockyard workers in the audience and from the public who had lodged objections. Many hundreds had signed a public petition also. Equally shocking is that before taking control of the Council several Labour cabinet members had expressed strong support for Saving Chatham Docks.”
They then said “The final decision now technically sits with the Secretary of State, who can call in the decision to assess the local, regional and national impact of this application. The decision has a big impact on Medway’s economy and wider issues for commercial river use in Medway.”
John Castle, Lib Dem spokesperson for St Mary’s Island said “I strongly believe this decision is wrong and that the jobs at Chatham Docks should be kept. It’s now clear that the decision must be called in and the wider issues placed in front of the Planning Inspectorate. The fight to Save Chatham Docks has lost this battle, but the fight goes on to the next stage.”
Chloe interviewed John Castle at the protest at the protest before this one you can watch that here.
Conservatives
Kelly Tolhurst the conservative parliamentary candidate for Rochester and Strood who has spoke very passionately about this issue in parliament spoke on X about this.
She first tweeted to thank her colleague Cllr Habib Tejan (Con) for St Mary’s Island “Cllr Habib Tejan spoke passionately in defence of the livelihoods of the local people who work in Chatham Docks in his ward despite the Medway Labour councillor from Strood laughing! Not sure the people in the room found having their jobs put at risk very funny.”
Kelly Tolhurst (Con) on X
She the released a thread on X and said:
Tonight Medway Labour showed that there is no doubt that they are NOT the party of working people. Neither can anything they say be trusted. They have made the biggest U-turn by unanimously supporting the potential loss of 800 jobs local high skilled jobs at Chatham Docks despite the Labour council leader & his cabinet pledging & Joining the campaign to Save Chatham Docks before the local elections. They also showed their true snobbery toward working people favouring what they so called “high tech” jobs over actual jobs, High skilled jobs in manufacturing & construction, the jobs that play a massive part in delivering the infrastructure of our country. Tonight many are worried about their futures and with Labour and their parliamentary candidate they are right to be!
Kelly, of course has been vocal and campaigning for years on this including asking the secretary of state to make a decision.
Siju Adeoye, former Labour Councillor for Chatham & Central
Yes, another long one, so please grab yourself a drink and or food before reading.
Former councillor for Chatham Central Siju Adeoyehas made some claims about Cllr Tristan Osborne that need to fact checked for accuracy.
The history:
First, we need some back story. Siju Adeoye, left the Labour Party and joined the Conservatives at the end of 2022 meaning, there wasn’t scope for a by-election.
The claims about her being bullied by the party are not unfounded and Chatham Branch including some of the Corbyn supporting councillors did go through some horrendous things at the hands of Labour Party.
In the friendship group some of us made, which Adeoye was part of (and admittedly, I still hold some feelings on this), we found out she joined the Conservatives live on air. I think that hurt a lot of us. Even when I’ve been standing in elections, I have made my friends aware that I am standing – even as a paper candidate.
However, the Tories let her stand Gillingham South to which she was unsuccessful.
What things is she saying, and need fact checking?
Screenshot of Siju’s tweet
What is the truth here?
Cllr Osborne was on the shortlist before any imposition meaning the CLP had shortlisted him as a candidate. Siju’s claims about an imposed candidate is true however, it’s not as bad as it’s previously been and at least someone on their shortlist is on the ballot paper.
“All hot air, no action”
Cllr Osborne also takes his roles very seriously and I remember him at the count in 2023, really weighing things up for the future of Medway, taking his role seriously. We had a brief chat about it and that chat actually left me respecting Tris even more.
Cllr Osborne has always been very proactive in his current role on cabinet, bringing in Red Routes (even though, as a Rainham resident, starting to not like them very much), standing up for the rights of Gypsy and travelling communities, setting up spaces with Kent Police in regards to motorbikes causing havoc to Medway residents.
These allegations from Siju are unfounded.
Allegations of homophobia and Islamophobia by Siju
Screenshot by Kabir on Twitter
This is a screenshot of Siju’s retweet. It says “Never Labour” with a picture of a person in an LGBT+ T-shirt, a person in a Burka and a photo with Keir Starmer that looks like he has a towel on his head.
This is offensive to Muslims and the LGBT+ community however, this is unsurprising when someone is friends with a church that promotes transphobia, homophobia and Islamophobia, maybe there’s a reason.
We are predicting, based off of recent polls that Labour will win all three parliamentary seats in Medway.
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