Murky black liquid has been spotted pouring into the River Medway.

The overflow near the Draysons Wine Bar by Maidstone Bridge in the centre of the town was filmed by borough councillor Stuart Jeffery.

Cllr Jeffery (Green) said: "As part of my council work, I proposed that we try to do something about the state of water in the borough.

"And I was pleased that the council agreed and we have started a working group to look into the issue.

"Sewage spills are not just confined to beaches, but pour into our rivers too, as this footage shows.

"In 2020, some 40,000 hours of sewage spills were recorded as going into the River Medway and its tributaries.

"Only this Thursday the Environment Agency moved its targets for clean rivers back from 2027 to 2063. I’ll be dead by then."

The overspill spotted by Cllr Jeffery is not understood to be sewage, the Environment Agency said. But the borough councillor added: "I am appalled by the government’s lack of action.

"This needs to be tackled fast. We cannot allow this legalised polluting to continue. We must stop using rivers and the sea as a sewer."

Southern Water is responsible for the sewerage system in Kent.

The Environment Agency has the oversight on the cleanliness of our waterways.

A spokesman said they hadn't been notified of the incident, but added: "What we can see on the video, together with wet weather from recent days, suggests this is rainwater or grime from nearby roads flushing through the sewer system.

"We are grateful to Cllr Jeffery for shooting the footage, but sewage pollution is generally not black."

Southern Water said it would look into the matter, but suspected the the outlet was a surface water drain and not a sewer.

Anyone with concerns about suspected pollution can call the Environment Agency 24-hour incident hotline: 0800 807060.