Maidstone Council's Objection to Hermitage Quarry Extension Confirmed by Cabinet

Maidstone Borough Council's outright rejection of the proposed extension of Hermitage Quarry into ancient Oaken Wood was confirmed unanimously at a special meeting of the Cabinet.

Maidstone's forensic demolition of KCC's "anachronistic" and "weak" policy defence of the inclusion of the quarry extension in the Kent Minerals Sites Plan concludes that the draft allocation is "unsound".

The Cabinet also agreed that professional officers would attend forthcoming hearings during the examination of the Kent Minerals Sites Plan. This decision was taken to ensure the most effective advocacy for Oaken Wood.

The motion to confirm Maidstone Council's opposition to the Hermitage Quarry allocation was proposed by Cllr. Tony Harwood (Lib Dem), seconded by Cllr. Simon Wales (Lib Dem), and approved unanimously by Cabinet.

At the conclusion of the Cabinet meeting, Cllr. Tony Harwood put on record a vote of thanks to officers for the quality and rigour of their work on the response to the Kent Minerals Sites Plan consultation.