Medway’s new council chief says his incoming administration could have to deal with a revenue shortfall of up to £19 million.

Last week Cllr Vince Maple and his team have made history by taking majority control of Medway Council from the Conservatives.

For Vince, after serving on the council for 16 years, the result is “just sinking in”.

He said: “If you said after the last disastrous General Election result in 2019, that I’d be standing next to Keir Starmer – potentially our next Prime Minister – after winning Medway, I’d say, ‘you’re having a laugh’.”

But speaking exclusively to KentOnline after announcing his new cabinet, Vince has already compiled his “to do” list.

He will be reinforcing his election pledges of keeping council tax in Medway the lowest in Kent, creating more accessible green spaces, maintaining weekly bin collections and a free bulky refuse service to deter fly-tipping.

He is also getting to grips with the more thornier issues, such as the massive delay in formulating a Local Plan to determine housing and infrastructure needs over the next 20 years.

He added: “The current plan is 20 years old next week. The public expect more and are talking about it more than ever before.

“It’s not straightforward but we need to have something to deliver in 18 months.”

The uncertain future of Chatham Docks, which is earmarked for development, is an integral part of the blueprint and needs to be resolved as soon as possible.

He said: “We need to get all parties in the same room, Medway Council, Peel L&P (the landowners) and the Save the Docks people.

“This stand-off can’t continue and we must find a way forward. It’s no good just sitting in offices and not answering letters.”

And the prospects for Innovation Park at Rochester Airport, which so far has failed to attract companies and boost the local economy, is also firmly on his agenda.

He said: “We have an innovation centre, but sadly and I hope it’s not the case, we don’t have anyone who wants to innovate there. We have to look at other options.”

But he is the the first to say “the awful financial mess” inherited from the Tories will mean making “difficult decisions”.

Although he does not move into the leader’s office at Gun Wharf in Chatham for another fortnight and has not yet fully studied the books, he believes there could be shortfall of revenue up to £19 million.

Other initiatives he plans to put in place include setting up a task-force to see how the problems of getting a doctor’s appointment can be resolved, which he says was one of the most popular complaints encountered on the doorstep over the election campaign.

Neighbourhood wardens will be placed in every ward to ensure concerns are dealt with by the council at a high level.

And business incentives will be introduced to all five of the Towns.

Despite their political differences, Vince has accepted advice from his outgoing predecessor, Cllr Alan Jarrett, who is retiring.

The 45-year-old said: “He told me to be patient and stick to your policies. Alan did a good job during Covid. It was a good cross-party effort.

“And he’s passionate about local government, in particular the unitary authority, for which I am thankful.”

He said he gets on personally well with Medway’s three Tory MPs, Tracey Crouch, Kelly Tolhurst and Rehman Chishti even though he disagrees with them on a number of matters concerning Medway.

He is looking forward to taking up the leadership and aims to be “approachable and accountable” to residents.

He added: “Who would ever have thought a lad from Luton Road would one day be leader of Medway Council?”

The new cabinet will be: leader Vince Maple, in charge of finance and strategic overview; deputy leader Teresa Murray, in charge of health and adults services; Adam Price, children’s services; Tracy Coombs, education; Naushabah Khan, housing and property; Simon Curry, climate change and regeneration; Lauren Edward, economic regeneration and forward investment; Tristan Osborne, community safety and enforcement; Harinder Mahil, heritage, culture and leisure; Zoe van Dyke, business management.

When elected at the age of 34, Vince was the youngest Labour group leader in the south east.

Prior to focusing on local government service, he was an officer for the GMB union, previously working as a civil servant in the Department of Work & Pensions and the Home Office.

He was also former Labour MP Jonathan Shaw's election agent in the 2005 and 2010 general elections and is an elected member of the South East Region Board of the Labour Party.

He contested the Chatham and Aylesford constituency for the party in the 2019 General Election running against Ms Crouch.

Vince has spearheaded the End Legal Loan Sharks campaign in Medway and also worked with families and communities to successfully defend primary schools in Rochester and Chatham from the threat of closure.

He has lived in Chatham for most of life, moving here as a child when his dad was in the Royal Navy – attending Luton Infant and Junior Schools and the Howard School in Rainham.

He lives with his civil partner Mary and their son Ned in Chatham Central ward, which he has represented since 2007.

In December 2019, they became the first mixed-sex couple to enter a civil partnership when they married.