A SMILE, A SONG AND AN `SSSI`..

We don`t have a housing problem here in deepest Kent.   It`s just a rumour put about by people with nowhere to live.  But help seemed to be on the way with the proposal to develop a former Army base just outside Chatham.   The 640 acre site has been earmarked for 18 years as being ideal for the construction of something like 5,000 houses, giving employment, helping the housing problem and giving a much needed boost to the local economy.

Trouble is, it has been discovered - after all that time - that the area is a breeding site for 88 nightingales and this has caused the area to be designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) - quite possibly the highest order of protection going.  So it`s entirely possible that our warbling feathered friends will prevent the development going ahead although, to be fair, Medway Council are lodging an objection to the designation.

Now I quite like nightingales and I wish them no harm and, after all, they probably have a right to a peaceful family life and to remain undisturbed in their family home.   But you do begin to wonder whether it is right for them to be able to put a stop to the much needed and long awaited housing development.   I would have thought they were perfectly capable of flying off and finding a few trees somewhere else where they can warble away to their hearts` content.   Somewhere like Berkeley Square for instance?