Dover’s Brexit planning took front of stage last week when I called on the Government to carefully consider local traffic management, air quality, and littering concerns in the coming weeks as the transition period comes to an end. Specifically calling for the Minister to ensure the proposed new border control facility at the White Cliffs Business Park is designed sensitively in order to take into account environmental and further traffic considerations which local residents have raised with her.
The Minister responded, saying:
“I thank her and her colleagues in local government for engaging so closely with me, for putting on record their detailed concerns and for inviting me to the Whitfield roundabout to see for myself the problems that she identified in such detail today. I commit to working closely with her, her local government colleagues, her local district council and Kent County Council, and to listen closely to the concerns of the local community.”
Further transition meetings were held last week with me, the Minister and the Leader of Dover District Council, Cllr Trevor Bartlett , on the “Keep Dover Clear” strategy, as part of a series of meetings in recent weeks and months looking specifically at the needs of local residents to get around the area, whatever may be happening at the Port of Dover. In addition, Kent County Council’s ‘Gold Command’ officer Barbara Cooper and I spoke at a briefing session for local councillors about the transition planning work for the area.
We know only too well in Dover what happens when port lorry traffic backs up. Over several weeks and months we have been making sure that Transition planning work takes account of our Keep Dover Clear strategy.
My attention is firmly fixed on making sure that, whatever is happening at the Port, we can still get around our area and that we get more jobs and investment here too.