On the morning of March 17, P&O Ferries tweeted that its ferries would not be operating "for the next few hours". On-board, crews were told to return to port.

At 11am, crews across the cross-Channel operator's vessels, now moored back at Dover, were put in front of a computer screen and informed, via video message, they were all being made redundant.

Staff were given "five minutes to get their stuff and get off the boat".

At the same time, arriving alongside the vessels were coachloads of replacement staff on lower wages.

Bosses of the ferry firm insisted the sacking of nearly 800 seafaring crew was necessary to protect its future. The uproar over the heartless move - conducted without necessary consultation - catapulted it to the top of the news agenda and tarnished the reputation of a once respected company in a manner it, surely, cannot have imagined.

While the actions of the management were debated at Westminster, the scandal meant P&O boats didn't operate for more than a month. And that led to Kent being hit full in the face by one of the repercussions.

As Easter approached, many families were planning their first foreign getaway since the pandemic. The only problem was with P&O not operating, space on other operators was at a premium. Not to mention the fact new passport checks on the UK side, as a consequence of Brexit, meant it was taking longer to get people and vehicles, and goods, through the ports.

The result? Travel chaos which stretched across east Kent and had a knock-on impact across the county. From Dover TAP to Operation Brock on the M20, even the M2 became embroiled in traffic jams as police halted lorries at Brenley Corner near Faversham to prevent them jumping the queue on the M20.

In short, there were traffic issues everywhere you looked...and it lasted weeks.

More traffic problems arose later in the year - this time from environmental protestors.

After 2021 saw stunts by Insulate Britain close parts of the M25 after they stopped the traffic by gluing their hands to the road surface, this year saw its headline grabbing antics replaced by Just Stop Oil.

They clambered up gantries and held protests above key roads - most notably sections of the M25 near the Dartford Crossing and, perhaps most memorably, when two campaigners risked life and limb by climbing up the steel supports of the QEII Bridge at Dartford. Few appreciated their efforts as roads were closed and inevitable tailbacks appeared. Some were so enraged they even fired fireworks at the protestors.

Talking of which, the year was dogged by strikes which seem to target pretty much every sector - from teachers and university lecturers to postal workers, bus drivers and barristers. Even ambulance drivers and nurses got in on the action during what proved a year of discontent.

But perhaps most frustrating of all was industrial action on our railways. Strikes began in June, still continued this month and more are due in January. It meant a return to working from home for many in Kent as Southeastern services pretty much ground to a complete halt with much of the county denied any form of service on the days of action.

After 2021 saw a host of big name retailers go to the wall, our high streets continued to be in a state of flux over the last 12 months with plenty of discussion as to just why they have declined and what needs to be done to revive them.

There were some casualties - perhaps most notably the collapse of JC Rook & Sons. The butchers had been operating for more than 55 years and had 11 branches across Kent before it collapsed into administration in March. Some 130 staff lost their jobs.

Macknade Fine Food had expanded out of its Faversham stomping ground, with sites in both Tunbridge Wells and Ashford. But both were closed during the course of the year, while plans to move into Folkestone were put on ice.

Other firms who hit hard times included 284-year-old Chartham Paper Mill, near Canterbury, in September, with dozens losing their positions, while 52 lost their jobs at Ellicon Construction in Sheerness when it went into administration.

For everyone else, it was very much a case of keeping their heads down, trying to cope with the bizarre situation of more job vacancies than unemployed, and hoping the recession just around the corner doesn't bite too hard.

The smell of Brexit continued to hang over so many commercial challenges - but with it still being the country's most divisive topic, any suggestion it was to blame for anything was quickly, and aggressively, denied by those who continue to believe we're better off out of the European Union. Time, it seems, isn't healing that particular social rift quite yet.

One business hoping Brexit provides an opportunity to capitalise on is Manston Airport - it continues, for yet another year, to be one of the county's on-going will-it-won't-it sagas.

The Thanet airstrip has stood abandoned since 2017 but after getting approval from the government to reopen (again) in August, it now faces another threat of a judicial review, which could delay its hopes of opening as a cargo hub yet further.

At the other end of the county, the much trumpeted London Resort on the Swanscombe Peninsula continues to vow to one day be the greatest all-singing, all-dancing entertainment complex the county has ever seen. But another year has passed and still the site ear-marked has yet to get a whiff of bulldozers revving up to build the £2.5billion attraction.

Original plans were withdrawn in March, but those behind the project insist it remains on track. First announced 10 years ago, it was originally supposed to be up and running by 2019...it is, therefore, perhaps not surprising that initial enthusiasm has been replaced with heavy scepticism by the majority of Kent folk. Will 2023 change our minds? The jury remains out, but the smart money is on us still discussing the concept this time next year.

Just down the road, to the east of Gravesend, plans for the Lower Thames Crossing continue to be tweaked. There was a fear the Chancellor might axe it as part of cost-cutting measures in his Autumn Statement, but it appears to still be on track. With a price tag of £9billion, it is now being considered by the Planning Inspectorate. If all goes to plan, work on it should start by 2024.

While we're in that neck of the woods, fans of Ebbsfleet United were getting excited by ambitious plans to transform its Stonebridge Road ground into a £40m modern 8,000-seater venue, sat within a major £1.2bn development which would include hotels, retail and the inevitable housing. If all goes to plan, the first game in the new ground could kick-off in 2026.

Over in Medway, Gillingham fans ended the year with renewed hope after a frankly miserable 12 months.

The club were relegated on the final day of the season from League One after a home defeat.

As the new season approached, chairman Paul Scally announced he was to step away from the day-to-day running of the club. The move was significant for such a vocal leader of the club.

As the season got under way, it was clear any hope of the Gills bouncing straight back up would have to be put on ice. In fact, by the halfway point, the club was already fighting to avoid a drop into the non-leagues. But hope may be at hand. By the end of November, it emerged a US property tycoon, Brad Galinson, had agreed to pump funds into the club - and two days before Christmas he got the keys to Priestfield and promised a "lucrative transfer window".

Quite what the new year will bring for the Gills remains to be seen.

For many of us, of course, it was a case of heading into Christmas with the unusual experience of the FIFA World Cup playing out. Hosted in Qatar, amid much controversy, the winter weather in the UK meant scenes of previous winter tournaments could not be replicated - with fans at outside screens having to huddle around heaters and avoid the downpours.

Tomorrow will see the concluding part of our review of the year.