§ Mr. OatenTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what meetings she has had in 2001 with agencies involved in flooding; what assessment she has made of the performance of flooding agencies(a) in relation to the reconstruction work made necessary by the winter 2000–01 flood damage and (b) the work done to prevent a recurrence of these events this winter; and if she will make a statement. [21648]
§ Mr. MorleyI hold regular meetings with the Environment Agency which is the principal flood defence operating authority and which exercises a general supervision over all matters relating to flood defence.
Last year's flooding was truly exceptional and followed the wettest autumn on record. Flood defences damaged last year have all been repaired and reinstated, and in some cases improved. This means that communities are now at least as well defended as they were before the floods, and are often better defended. Longer term work to improve defences is under way in many areas. The arrangements for responding to flooding, which proved to be effective last year, have been further improved in the light of lessons learned.