DAVID HEATH MP CALLS FOR MORE HELP ON SOMERSET FLOODS
4.45.00pm GMT Wed 17th Dec 2008
Somerton & Frome MP David Heath called on Environment Secretary Hilary Benn today to give more help to Somerset to help combat flooding. And he asked for special assistance to a village school which was flooded yet again last weekend.
David was responding to a statement from Mr Benn in the House of Commons on the Pitts report on flooding which recommended more direct action by local authorities, backed by government cash. David, who was himself a victim of a flash flood in the early hours of last Saturday when his car was swept away and partially submerged, said that others had not been so lucky, including, sadly, Mr Henry Collier who tragically lost his life in similar circumstances in Martock, in his constituency.
David Heath called for funds to be allocated on a needs basis, rather than the usual formula which short-changes Somerset, and asked Mr Benn to look particularly at what help could be given to schools like Countess Gytha Primary School in Queen Camel which is likely to be out of action for weeks after flooding yet again.
David said:
"I welcome the fact that extra support is to be given to local authorities to deal with regular flooding, but it's important that the cash gets distributed fairly and goes to the areas with the greatest need, like Somerset. Nothing will entirely prevent floods, but we can at least mitigate the effects and reduce the misery and loss of life which floods sometimes carry in their wake.
I am grateful to Mr Benn for listening carefully to what I had to say about Countess Gytha School. He has asked me to follow this up with him, and I certainly will do so. If some schools building cash can be released to help schools like Countess Gytha to be protected better from flooding, or better still a new school to be built in a more suitable location, that would be great news. It cannot be sensible to carry on with premises which are so prone to flooding and where the education of the children is so often interrupted."
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