Floodwaters continue to sweep across England, leaving communities battered. Flood warnings have been in place across Somerset after a weekend of heavy raun.
Liberal Democrat MP Sarah Dyke, representing Glastonbury and Somerton, painted a grim picture for her constituency. “Knole is a small hamlet that previously never flooded, but last winter nine homes flooded every month,” she said, citing rising mental health struggles and the anxiety gripping residents.
Emma Hardy, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs responded by emphasising government programs such as the Build Back Better scheme, which offers £10,000 grants to bolster flood resilience in affected homes.
“Having your home or place of work flooded at any time is a horrendous experience,” said Emma Hardy, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, during Monday’s debate in the House of Commons.
“Flooding is such an important issue, and I will work tirelessly to make our communities more resilient,” Hardy affirmed, adding that the government would invest £2.4 billion in flood defences over the next two years.
Another persistent theme was the tension between housing development and flood risk. Conservative MP John Glen from Salisbury praised local flood protection efforts but voiced concerns over inadequate scrutiny of new developments.
“Many people in Salisbury remain concerned about those outcomes,” he said, urging a review of planning policies to ensure housing projects do not exacerbate flooding.
Ms Hardy assured Mr Glen that flood resilience is a key consideration for future developments. “If alternative sites are not available developments must be flood resilient and resistant for their lifetimes and must not increase overall flood risk,” she said.
Liberal Democrat MP Claire Young of Thornbury and Yate added to the call for better planning, describing constituents whose properties were damaged by water runoff from incomplete housing projects. She advocated for stricter enforcement of drainage requirements. Ms Hardy acknowledged the issue, pledging to address gaps in the 2010 Flood and Water Management Act.
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