Green-led Folkestone & Hythe District Council is drawing a line under years of controversy by announcing that Princes Parade will be left as it is, allowing biodiversity to thrive.

The planning process can be as confusing as it is controversial. Here we explain very briefly how it works and the constraints upon planning authorities like Folkestonbe & Hythe District Council and our councillors who sit on the planning committee.

We have been trying for more than a month to get the editor of The Looker and The Hurricane to correct a story in which he claimed one of our councillors wants to allow the Marsh to flood. The story was nonsense but because he won't publish a correction, we have done so here.

Cllr Jim Martin, Kent's first Green council Leader, highlighted some of Folkestone & Hythe District Council's achievements since May 2023, including balancing budgets while building more council homes, attracting millions in new funding and launching a youth forum.

New initiatives to capitalise on Folkestone's positive press with a district-wide tourism offer and a new strategy for protecting and enhancing local heritage assets are just part of current work within Rich Holgate's cabinet portfolio. Along with the regeneration of Folkestone town centre, these will contribute to efforts to boost the district's economy.

Shepway Green Party is fielding a formidable roster of candidates, across all six divisions covered by Folkestone & Hythe district, at the Kent County Council (KCC) elections on 1 May. It will be the last time voters get a chance to pass judgement on how the Conservatives have run KCC before it, and the district council, are replaced by a unitary authority. This is a vital opportunity to send a great new Green team to County Hall.

The climate crisis is global but we can all make a difference locally. Councillor Stephen Scoffham is working with those in the community committed to making a difference and now the district council has a new Green Grants scheme to boost projects large and small.

Roy Smith, a local artist and teacher, has been selected to contest Hythe West in May's county council elections. He has lived in Hythe for more than 30 years. Having worked with young people all his life, he wants to be a voice for them at Kent County Council. If elected, Roy will take on the seat from Jenni Hawkins, who won it in a by-election in 2023. Green Martin Whybrow represented Hythe West at Kent County Council for eight years before standing down in 2021.