The battle to save Lenham has stepped up a gear with a high profile political figure speaking out against the borough council's plan.

MP for Mid Kent and Faversham, Sir Hugh Robertson, made an appearance at the village’s market on Sunday morning to address crowds about Maidstone Borough Council’s housing target.

The target currently stands at 18,600 new homes in the borough by 2031, a figure which has already been decreased from 19,600, with 1,745 houses proposed for Lenham.

Sir Hugh said: “These are vast numbers and there is no way that the infrastructure in this part of Kent can cope with this level of development.”

The former Olympics and Paralympics Minister went on to compare the very different figures that had been put forward from Swale Borough Council — which proposes 10,800 homes by 2031 — and MBC.

He said: “Eric Pickles is absolutely clear that it is up to local councils to dictate numbers. Swale has a tiny number that it is confident it can defend, whereas Maidstone has gone for a very large number. We need to understand why there are such huge discrepancies between the two plans.”

Lenham resident Mike Cockett, who has organised the Save Lenham petition, said: “These comments put the campaign back at the door of MBC and particularly Maidstone councillors who need to start putting their opinions on the table.”

Mr Cockett said a realistic figure would be in the region of 14,000 new homes by 2031.

In addition to strong online support the Save Lenham petition has so far got 400 signatures – about 20% of the total population.