§ 7. Mr. Smithersasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he is aware that dwelling houses in High Street, Stockbridge, are flooded, that their ground floor accommodation is unusable in consequence, and that High Street has been flooded continuously for three months; and whether he will arrange for immediate action to be taken to carry off the surplus water.
Mr. VaneI know about the flooding in Stockbridge, and greatly regret it. I understand from the Hampshire River Board, which is the responsible authority, that it is giving urgent consideration to the problem. I will write to my hon. Friend when I have further information.
§ Mr. SmithersIs my hon. Friend aware that, on 27th October, his predecessor told me that at a board meeting the following week the river board was considering what remedial measures would be practicable? Can he give me some indication when it may be possible to do something to alleviate the misery in which my constituents have been living since last October?
Mr. VaneI appreciate the difficulty, but in this case there are engineering and technical difficulties. There is the high water level in the river and the fact that the chalk subsoil is so saturated that there is no way of dealing with this problem until the level of the Test drops a little