Will Wye need to be saved again?

It’s only just over a year since my local village of Wye was saved from grasping, greedy development by a bunch of secretive public bodies that ought to be hanging their heads in shame. I’m proud to say that I was one of the bunch of people that helped bring this stinking plan crashing to the earth. You can read all about it in Saved, my account of the campaign, which exposed, through the astonishing legwork of my journalistic colleague Justin Williams, the nasty, devious deceitful ways of those behind the project.

What was at risk was more than eight hundred acres of beautiful and supposedly highly protected farmland (some of which you can see here) classified as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Kent. The land was grabbed by Imperial College when it took over and progressively destroyed one of the world’s most famous agricultural colleges which had been based in the village for a century. Imperial lost its battle to redevelop Wye, but it remains the owner of the estate it got so cheaply.

And there’s the rub. Over the past year, while protesting that it intends to support the local community, it has steadily run down everything it can. The farm was put up for lease - and a well researched bid to turn it into a community venture was flatly rejected almost the moment the detailed application went in.

So who gets to run this beautiful piece of southern England? Believe it or not farmers who appear to be more happy as property developers. I am out of campaigning now, but an excellent Kent website www.wattyler.com has documented the latest developments in this sorry saga. They are worrying indeed, not least because they reveal what many of us have known for a long time: that the vindictive individuals who got their fingers burned last year can’t wait to ‘get their revenge’ on the doughty community that sent them packing.

I hope the battle of Wye will not need to be fought again. There is no social or economic need to use this precious landscape for anything other than its natural purpose - agriculture. Anyone who tells you otherwise is simply looking to line their pockets.