The near-500 empty homes in Dover district would boost the local economy if they were filled, says a Green MEP.

Alexandra Phillips revealed this in a new report when she visited Dover town yesterday (Tuesday).

If £35 million was invested in bringing Dover's 470 homes back into use that would generate at least £56 million in the local economy, it says.

The 470 properties are among 6,000 standing idle in Kent, according to government statistics from 2018.

The document says that research carried out by the Scottish and Welsh governments found that for every £1 spent on bringing empty homes back into use around £1.60 was generated in the local economy.

Ms Phillips, who represents South East England, turned up on a fully electric tour bus meeting students at Dover Technical College and giving a talk at St Mary's Parish Centre in Church Street.

She was at the end of a five-day tour of the South East to highlight the report, called A Green New Deal, an update of the original version published in 2008.

One assertion is that the climate crisis could be tackled by creating new green jobs and investing in clean energy.

To directly tackle pollution more freight could go on trains rather than lorries and there could be investment in greener buses, e-bikes and less polluting ferries and lorries.

The report uses Dover district as one case study.

Its facts and figures reiterate that Dover is home to Europe's busiest passenger port, handling almost 12 million passengers and 2.5 million lorries in 2018 alone.

Port work directly employs 4,000 people and supports 22,00 jobs in the wider economy.

Across the South East Local Enterprise Partnership Dover has one of the lowest shares (18.4%) of highly skilled residents.

Dover is in the 40% most deprived local authority areas.

Out of 67 sub-areas in the district, 16 are in the highest 30% of areas of deprivation nationally , four are in the top 10% and one, St Radigund's is in the top 1%.

In the district as a whole 15% of people live in income deprivation and 21.4% of children come from deprived families.

The report has a series of targets the area should hit to ease poverty, boost the economy and make the area greener.

For housing it calls on the government to ensure all empty homes are brought back into use.

It also wants the government to ensure that all recyclable waste is recycled.

The study says that 49% of waste is recycled at present in the district.

Yet for each extra 1,000 tons recycled, 2.9 direct jobs would be created and 1.5 indirect ones.

The report also specifies neighbourhoods where improvements can be made.

Oneidet is refitting 1840s-constructed buildings in London Road, Dover, and the Thirties council-built houses in St Radigund's.

The same could be done for the former mining community homes at Mill Hill in Deal and other ex-mining villages.

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