Hilary's Ark!

I can't believe that there is nobody in government or in the agencies that didn't think of saying "Can we cope if we get a deluge that means severe flooding will occur?" or "If the banks of rivers burst to such a degree that towns get cut off, can we cope?" - Questions like that.

From the way Gordon Brown talks, we still need to "learn lessons". Is this country forever going to be "learning lessons"? Apparently some fruitcake in the agency responsible for flood barriers decided they should be kept some place well away from places like Upton-on-Severn.

Chaos is over large parts of England. Maybe we need a teacher from somewhere where they know how to deal with flooding to come and finish the lessons. Hilary Benn has praised the way the emergency services dealt with "unprecedented" levels of rainfall and said he had "total confidence" in the response of the Environment Agency. However, the budget had been cut.

The real lessons are that money is not being spent adequately on flood defences and that houses continue to be built on flood plains. Unless the government knuckles down to do the homework houseowners/renters and businesses are going to end up being unable to get insurance. The whole economy could unravel in parts, all because we are still "learning lessons"!

Posted in: Environment Agency,floods,natural disasters