Delusional MP Kevin McKenna shows utter contempt for local democracy

Without any consultation what-so-ever, the Sittingbourne and Sheppey MP wants to dump the vast majority of the boroughs new housing allocation on to the neighbouring constituency of Faversham and Mid-Kent making him by far the ultimate NIMBY.

However, if Sittingbourne residents are thinking that they just dodged a bullet, I’m afraid I have some very bad news as this is in effect a supersized expansion of Sittingbourne, so large that barely anyone in Swale will escape its impact.

In a recent article for the Guardian where he discusses his unbridled support for Highsted Park, the journalist claims “he is taking a brave stand as local MP in backing this large development.”

Just one problem, he isn’t the local MP, that would be Helen Whately, so well done to the Guardian for their outstanding journalism.

The article says that the site covers part of the Sittingbourne and Sheppey constituency. Whilst that is technically correct, the article fails to clarify the minuscule extent of the development which would occur within the Sittingbourne and Sheppey constituency amounting to a few tens of units out of the 8,400 dwellings planned. None of the employment space, schools, doctors, sports facilities etc and only the tiniest slither of the new road network would be located in his constituency.

One of the most delusional aspects of his appraisal of the situation, and hardly surprising coming at this cold without bothering to, you know talk to anyone, is that he believes that Whitehall planners have greater powers in negotiating with developers and will raise the percentage of affordable housing.

One of the reasons that this application was unanimously rejected is just that, that it would not deliver on affordable housing, in fact it would result in severely undermining Swale Borough Councils ability to deliver on affordable housing. His over estimation of the negotiating powers of Whitehall is also highly problematic. Quinn Estates on their last massively controversial planning application in Borden which also got called in, stop me if you see a pattern here, failed miserably in managing to negotiate anything like the council’s target of 40%, in fact all they could muster was a miserly 12%.


His disrespect however shows no bounds, his disrespect of the local democratic process, the local council cross party opposition to the scheme, the planner officers who recommended that the applications be refused, the 13 parish councils and thousands of members of the public who have spent 20 years fighting this ridiculous scheme, the former Labour MP Derek Wyatt who opposed the scheme and not least his own local party members who he suggests will “be relieved to have this decision taken out of their hands, free to say they voted against while quietly recognising the country needs to build.”

Either way it doesn’t look good for local Labour members now, basically forced to acknowledge that they either secretly support the scheme and have deliberately violated their own code of conduct or that Kevin McKenna has gone rogue to further his own interests at Westminster and is more than happy to throw his colleges under the bus.  

Cllr Tim Gibson, Leader of the Labour Group told us

“Planning applications have to be based on planning policy grounds and my group shares the view of the Council's planning officers, that planning considerations make these applications inappropriate for a range of reasons, environmental and highways in particular.”

“We are concerned too about the deliverability of such a large and long term scheme and we question whether it will ever meet the need for affordable housing. Our preference in the Labour Group is for more town centre development, meeting real local need.”

“The need for extra housing could be better achieved if the land banking of already agreed applications was less easy for developers.”


Kevin McKenna’s inexperience, complete lack of local knowledge and arrogance is even more evident on social media with numerous complaints regarding his lack of engagement. However, one recent post in particular made some absolutely astonishing claims, which if true, clearly demonstrate a colossal lack of judgement on his part.



Above is a photo from a visit to Downing Street in 2007, where I along with my Five Parishes Opposition Group colleges, Derek Wyatt MP and director of CPRE Kent, Dr Hilary Newport who isn’t in this photo handed in a petition of some 3,200 signatures. We have met with, engaged with and discussed numerous proposals with members of all the main political parties at every level over the years.

Planning is supposed to be about engaging with people, allowing them to share their opinions for or against any given proposal. Then listening, considering and ultimately reaching a conclusion. Now apparently this process isn’t fit for purpose, because Keven McKenna the new self-appointment expert on such matters deems that its just too important for silly little country bumpkins like us to decide.

This is an enormously complex scheme, nothing on this scale has ever been built in Swale before and for someone who isn’t from Swale, hasn’t been here for five minutes and almost certainly won’t be around when the pain of these proposals starts to bite, to do a puff piece in a national newspaper about a scheme which isn’t even in his constituency beggars belief.

Andy Hudson
Sittingbourne.Me

I have given this considerable thought.  Kevin McKenna should issue an immediate apology and a rebuttal for his ill-thought out comments os simply resign now.  His short tenure as our MP has been disasterous. He should go.  And I thoughtwe could go no lo lower than the forner occupant of this post.  I am even shocked that I could be thinking this way.

Well that sums up the situation.

Perhaps we should start a parliamentary petition on the call in process of the Secretary of State and one for a new byelection in Sittingbourne and Sheppey as these are both matters of national importance.

Expertly put Andy.

Why is it all the wrong peoole seem to always get elected?

Kevin McKenna is new to the area, his total unfamiliarity of the villages, hamlets, woodlands and grade 1 Agricultural land within and neighbouring his constituency is self-evident.

The lack of rural bus services, and both Kevin McKenna and his husband not holding driving licences makes his familiarisation with the local rural area highly problematic.

https://www.parallelparliament.co.uk/mp/kevin-mckenna/debate/2024-10-16/commons/westminster-hall/driving-test-availability

If kevin McKenna had walked down Bell Road from where his photo was taken and talked to the council, he may have taken a different view to the whole scale destruction of the countryside that he is advocating. Within sight from the council offices are the derelict Bell House, demolished Bell Centre, vacant old cinema, vacant ambulance station and the vacant Lebus factory. These sites are all prime brown field sites for redevelopment into affordable housing.

Is there 1 positive improvement this man has done since being MP for the constituency?