New MP has offensive tweets outed
Plus first Chatham demonstrator jailed, we review Ye Arrow, our weekly events guide, news in brief, and more
Every now and again, it feels like there is almost too much news. Following a week of Medway news dominated by far-right protests in Chatham, news broke of offensive old tweets from new Rochester and Strood MP Lauren Edwards. We dig into the full details of those below. Further down, we have news of the first person from this week’s Chatham demonstration being jailed, a review of Ye Arrow in Rochester, our weekly events guide, news in brief, and more.
Editor’s note: Thanks so much for all of the kind words about our coverage of Wednesday’s demonstration, which saw the far-right and anti-racist campaigners standing off next to a dual carriageway in Chatham. It took lots of conversations, on-the-ground reporting, and hours of watching video streamed from the event. The result is a piece that, I believe, captures what happened in our town this week, for better or worse. It’s the kind of in-depth journalism that we want to do more of, and we’re grateful to all of our paid supporters who give us the resources to do it.
New MP has offensive tweets outed
It’s been a while since we’ve had a good old-fashioned scandal about tweets someone posted years ago.
Step forward new Rochester and Strood Labour MP Lauren Edwards, who has had to apologise after tweets featuring racist and ableist language were dug up and shared around on social media.
The tweets, which date from 2009 to 2011, feature phrases like “fucking estonian retards”, talk about elbowing a homeless man in the ribs, and question the sexuality of Conservative politician William Hague.
Inevitably, as the tweets started to circulate, the obligatory apology post appeared:
I have recently been made aware of a small number of tweets that I posted on Twitter from over a decade ago, which I now deeply regret.
They were a significant error of judgement on my part, and I apologise wholeheartedly.
Since becoming a local councillor and more recently an MP, I have seen first-hand the importance of bringing communities together and working with tolerance and respect for all in our society.
I pledge to use my platform to continue that important work and dedicate myself to serving all residents of Rochester and Strood.
Significant error of judgment is one way of describing these, but Edwards wouldn’t be the first politician to be caught out by questionable comments from the past.
Things peaked this morning when Twitter owner and Lex Luthor cosplayer Elon Musk amplified the tweets in response to Edwards’ apology, which likely wasn’t on her list of things to happen a month after becoming an MP.
Edwards’ quickly deleted her account, leaving users checking her profile finding a rather apt ‘Something went wrong’ message.
As the situation has progressed, the strangest thing has been the lack of any comment from anyone within the Labour Party. Nationally, the party has not offered any response. Locally, despite repeated requests, no statement has been made, despite Medway Labour leader Vince Maple managing to release multiple statements in response to Wednesday’s demonstrations within the same time frame. It’s a strange look for a party sweeping promising to do things differently to put their heads in their sand and hope it might go away.
Locally, the issue presents a logistical headache for the Labour Group. Edwards is still a Labour councillor, and the Group Whip in charge of disciplinary issues is Cllr Gareth Myton, who also happens to be Edwards’ partner. That’s a slightly awkward dinner conversation.
Former Rochester and Strood MP Kelly Tolhurst, who was defeated by Edwards last month, said she was “shocked and concerned by the views”, while Leader of the Conservative Group, Cllr George Perfect, wrote to Cllr Maple to raise his concerns.
Now, it isn’t entirely unusual for politicians to have questionable content on their social media channels from a time before they were public figures. What is more unusual is that these tweets were all posted while Edwards was working in parliament for Labour MPs and that somehow neither she nor anyone else picked them up in the years since.
Political parties usually undertake due diligence on potential candidates to ensure that something like this doesn’t come out later. Given Edwards has been through a selection process both locally and nationally, it raises questions about whether the Labour Party didn’t find them or didn’t think they were problematic enough to be an issue. Neither scenario is particularly good.
Medway Labour declined to comment for this story. Maybe they’ll have something by our Tuesday edition.
In brief
🔥 Two areas of the Great Lines were on fire last night. Kent Fire and Rescue Service put out the fires around 9pm, and they are being treated as suspicious.
🚓 A teenager was stabbed in Gillingham on Tuesday afternoon. The incident on Canterbury Street saw the victim airlifted to hospital, where he is in a stable condition.
🎙️ Newly elected Chatham and Aylesford MP Tris Osborne is on the Kent Politics Podcast this week. He discusses his first few weeks in parliament and the impact of social media on recent disorder, but not his views on Estonians.
First Chatham demonstrator jailed
Yesterday, we published our report from Wednesday’s far-right demonstration in Chatham, which ended in a stand-off with anti-racism campaigners.
That report features an arrest being made of a man using a homophobic slur towards a police officer. Word from the Crown Prosecution Service today proves that the wheels of justice can sometimes move quite quickly.
The man, Daniel Baldock of Medway, was sentenced today to 14 weeks in prison, becoming the first person in Kent to be jailed following recent disorder.
Baldock pleaded guilty to an offence of disorderly conduct, though his solicitors claimed he was unaware of the protests in the area. Magistrates didn’t seem to believe this, telling him he knew “damn well” they were happening and that he attended regardless.
Baldock’s sentence was increased from 12 weeks to 14 weeks, given the homophobic nature of the offence.
Out to Lunch: Ye Arrow
In which Steven Keevil assesses the lunch options available in our towns. This time, he’s eating at Ye Arrow in Rochester…
Ye Arrow is located just off the main crossroads on Rochester High Street, looking towards Rochester Castle. For some reason, it is connected internally with another High Street pub, The Jolly Knight, even though they are two separate establishments. Inside, the pub is open and welcoming, if not particularly modern. The menu offers a good range of pub fare without relying entirely on beige food.
We ordered the Arrow Combo for two, which includes sticky BBQ pork ribs, chicken wings, onion rings, homemade coleslaw, corn on the cob and fries. In a moment of panicked ordering, I also got some whitebait for a starter.
The whitebait was delicious, with a good tartare sauce. However, it was served with the main (possibly our fault), and so added a complex taste to the rest of the meal. The ribs were well cooked, and the meat tenderly slipped off the bone. The chicken wings were covered in the same sticky sauce and were all the better for it. The onion rings were fine. The meat was served on top of the fries, which meant they were covered in the sauce and meat juice, which I am very on board for. The salad (with no dressing) was nice, and it had a good chunky coleslaw, though for a combo for two, felt like a small portion.
Overall though, Ye Arrow was good tasty food, served by a friendly team, and I look forward to eating there again.
Events this week
🛍️ Rochester City Vintage & Artisan Market is back tomorrow (Sat 10 Aug), with over 25 stalls selling unique gifts and products along Rochester High Street. Free.
🎸 Poco Loco in Chatham has a night of noise rock tomorrow (Sat 10 Aug). Dead Mammals headline, with support from the excellent Punching Swans, Sheena, and Sonic Hawkins. Tickets £5.
🏳️🌈 Local artist Michi Matsumi has an exhibition that celebrates LGBTQ+ culture through visual arts and poetry at Poco Loco in Chatham from tomorrow (Sat 10 Aug) until Sun 18 Aug. Matsumi will also be hosting talks at the Queerdom exhibition throughout the week. Free.
🏳️🌈 Rob Flood, Chair of the City of Rochester Society, sits down with veteran LGBT+ activist Derek Arrowsmith at Chatham Unitarian Church on Monday (12 Aug). The conversation will cover his life before the decriminalisation of homosexuality to modern queer culture. Free, booking required.
📺 Odeon in Chatham are holding a screening of I Saw The TV Glow on Monday evening (12 Aug). Jane Schoenbrun’s acclaimed horror drama hasn’t had much of an outing in UK cinemas, so this is a nice treat. Tickets £5.
🧱 The tiny Medway Art Box on Rochester High Street has a new Lego exhibition from Wednesday (14 Aug) with an installation featuring work by local Lego groups, enthusiasts, and others. Free.
🏳️🌈 Sun Pier Sounds are holding a Medway Pride special on Thursday (15 Aug), with three Medway LGBT+ musicians playing about the Edith May barge at Sun Pier. Emma Leigh, Bex Howarth, and Biddle are all set to take to the stage. Free, booking required.
More Authority
Wednesday night saw a stand-off between far-right demonstrators and anti-racism campaigners on a dual carriageway near Rochester Airport. Using a combination of on-the-ground reporting and details gleaned from hours of live streamed video of the event, we published a detailed account of exactly what happened.
This kind of reporting is only possible thanks to our paid supporters that allow us the time and resources to cover it. If you’d like to support us in doing more of this sort of thing, please consider becoming a paid supporter of our work by hitting the big orange button below.
Footnotes
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Music that soundtracked the creation of this edition: Let Them Eat Chaos by Kae Tempest, Isle of Dogs by Tigercats, and Megabear by Me Rex.
So is Monday the 11th or the 12th? In one story something's going on on Sunday 11th and then in the next story something's going on on Monday 11th?