Kent MP leads Euro rebellion
Kent MP Mark Reckless led a rebellion of Conservative MPs in defeating the government in a vote on the European Union.
Royal Mail Centre opens in Kent
A huge new sorting office for Kent has opened in Rochester
Medway celebrates Sweeps Festival
One of the more bizarre May Day celebrations takes place in Kent today. The Sweeps Festival in Rochester is the largest in the country.
Live updates
CCTV released in hunt for missing soldier
Kent Police has released a CCTV image of missing teenage soldier Josh Thomas.
It captures Josh, 18, on a traffic island in the middle of the A2 outside the Crown pub in Rochester shortly before 1am on Wednesday 10 April.
The CCTV shows him walking on Rochester bridge towards Corporation Street and a black hatchback car is stopped next to him.
The car then drives off and is reversed back, seemingly for whoever's in the car to talk again to the young soldier.
Police are also appealing to two men on BMX bikes who were seen on Corporation Street early on Wednesday morning to come forward to help in the search. They are then seen riding along the High Street back towards Rochester at just before 2am.
Investigating officer, Detective Sergeant Rik Spicer, said: "This CCTV image shows Josh sometime after he left the pub. It shows what he was wearing on the night and I would urge anyone that saw him to come forward and help us."
Josh, who comes from Wales, is a soldier at Brompton barracks on Dock Road in Gillingham, He is described as white, about 5ft 9ins tall, slim build and with short dark brown hair. He was wearing a dark blue Lyle and Scott jumper with white and red collar, grey jeans and white Converse trainers.
Officers want to speak with anyone who saw Josh on Corporation Street or the people in the black car that stopped on Rochester bridge, to come forward by calling the non-emergency number, 101, quoting reference 10-0243. Alternatively contact Kent Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
Plans for new £26m rail station unveiled
Plans for a new £26 million railway station in Rochester have been revealed.
Network Rail is proposing to build the new station as part of its "commitment to increase capacity on the railway and deliver better facilities for passengers in Medway and Kent".
The new station, planned for land at Corporation Street, is part of a wider £135 million investment programme in the county as the number of passengers using the railway continues to grow.
A formal planning application is expected to be submitted this spring.
Fiona Taylor, route managing director for Kent, said: “The new station will be able to accommodate longer trains than the current station, helping boost capacity and providing more seats for passengers.
“The development will also help kick-start the wider regeneration of the Riverside area, which is an important part of the development of Rochester."
Cllr Rodney Chambers added: “The number of rail passengers is forecast to grow significantly and freeing up this space for a new station will not only improve the service for commuters and other passengers, but also make sure it grows with future demand.
“It would also result in the train station moving closer to the centre of Rochester, and the places that visitors come to, and give local people a newer, better station that is easier to get to and has better links with local bus services.”
The new station will have three platforms, all of which will be able to accommodate trains with up to 12 carriages, Network Rail said.
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Second death in road crash
Police say they are continuing to appeal for witnesses after a second person died following a car crash in Rochester.
The collision took place in the Ratcliffe area of the town just after 3.50pm on Saturday. A silver Peugeot left the road for "reasons unknown" and hit a road sign.
A 30-year-old woman was pronounced dead at the scene. A 29-year-old man was airlifted to London with life-threatening injuries and has since died.
Two girls, aged four and seven, also sustained minor injuries. They are now being cared for by relatives.
Police are appealing for witnesses.
Woman, 30s, killed in car collision
Kent Police are appealing for witnesses after a woman was killed in a road traffic collision in Rochester. The incident happened at about 3.50pm on Saturday, 6 April 2013, on the Ratcliffe Highway. A grey Peugeot car left the road and came to rest in a field after colliding with a road sign.
A woman in her thirties was pronounced dead at the scene. A man was airlifted to hospital with life threatening injuries. Two children aged four and seven, who were also in the car, sustained minor injuries and were taken to the Medway Maritime Hospital for medical attention.
Officers from the county's Serious Collision Investigation Unit are investigating. Anyone with information or who saw the vehicle leave the Medway-bound carriageway can contact Kent Police on 01622 798538.
Thief escapes with £6,000 watch
Kent Police have released an image of a man they would like to speak to in connection with the theft of a £6,000 watch from a jewellery shop in Rochester.
The theft was reported from Kaizen Antiques in the High Street on March 2.
A man entered the shop and asked to look at an Omega Seamaster watch. After looking at the watch for a short while, he began moving towards the door before running out along the High Street in the direction of Northgate.
Police hunt armed robbers
There's been an armed robbery at a shop in Rochester. Police were called on 8:40 on Saturday evening to a shop on Borstal Street after two men were reported to have threatened staff with what's thought to have been a hand gun. The men left on a motorbike with about £100 cash and some cigarettes.
One man has stocky build, about 6'3", grey hooded top and gloves, dark trousers and a white and blue crash helmet with a circular motif.
The other man is thin, about 5'11" with white baseball cap, black jacket with a white or yellow stripe and black shoes.
Police say it could be linked to an armed robbery at a Post Office in Milton Regis, Sittingbourne on 10 December. Anyone with information is asked to call DC Dave Godden on 101 quoting reference XY/039327/12.
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Cathedral services today
Winchester Cathedral:
8 am Holy Communion, 10 am Mattins (Boys & Girls choristers with lay clerks), 11.15 am Sung Eucharist (The Dean - Chilcott Shepherd's Carol), 3.30 pm Evensong & procession to the Christmas Tree.
Salisbury Cathedral:
8 am Holy Communion, Trinity Chapel, 8.30 am Morning worship with Holy Communion, 10.30 am Eucharist, 3 pm Choral evensong
Rochester Cathedral:
8 am Holy Communion, 10.30 am The Eucharist of Christmas Morning (Girls & Mens voices)
Portsmouth Cathedral:
8 am Holy Communion. 09.30 am Parish Eucharist with Choir, 11.15 am Sung Eucharist with carols, trumpets & drums.
Canterbury Cathedral:
8 am Holy Communion, 11 am Christmas Eucharist, 3.15 pm Evensong
BREAKING NEWS: Thousand jobs for airport
Plans have been announced to secure the future of Rochester Airport, which could create up to 1,000 jobs.
A new all weather runway will be built as part of a new scheme to revamp the site.
Medway Council says there are no plans for commercial flights but the airport will continue with a mixture of leisure helicopter and air taxi use.
Man charged with air hostess death
A Kent man has appeared in court, charged with causing the death of a teenager in a car crash nine years ago. Air hostess Charlotte Smoker, 19, from Hertfordshire died from her injuries a day after a collision on the M25 near junction 4 in November 2003.
Zahid Masood, 47, from Heron Way, Rochester has been remanded in custody. He will appear at Maidstone Crown Court on November 19.
Detective Sergeant Scott Lynch, from Kent Police, said: 'This collision may have occurred nine years ago but we have been actively investigating it throughout that time. I would like to urge anyway who didn’t come forward at the time and remembers the collision to come forward."
Kent MP leads Euro rebellion
Kent MP Mark Reckless led a rebellion of Conservative MPs in defeating the government in a vote on the European Union.
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