Flood Defences

Debate between Lord Benyon and Anne Marie Morris

Wednesday 6th July 2011 Westminster Hall

[Richard Benyon]

I recognise the point that my hon. Friend makes and it is now on the record. My officials and I will look carefully at it. However, that is not the information that I had when preparing for this debate, so I will take that point away and get back to her.

Let us look at the case that my hon. Friend raises, because it is important to understand the history. I apologise to other hon. Members who might wish to intervene, but I have only a few moments left. My hon. Friend called this debate and I want to be able to answer her points. Last September, an independent reservoir engineer was appointed to assess the proposals in the context of the Reservoirs Act 1975. The Act is designed to ensure that public safety is maintained. The engineer acted in accordance with guidance produced by the Institution of Civil Engineers. At that stage, the engineer identified the reservoir as a category A reservoir. That classification means that a breach of what could be an 85,000 cubic metre reservoir could seriously endanger a community—we have already discussed what constitutes a community. As a result, it is only right that the highest standards of public safety apply. At best, a failure would increase the level of flood-water, thus defeating the purpose of the scheme. At worst, a catastrophic failure would result in human tragedy. The engineer agreed necessary design standards that should apply in this case to maintain public safety.

In March, new modelling led the engineer to conclude that a higher design standard was necessary. In May, a second opinion was sought, again from an independent reservoir engineer. The second opinion confirmed that the Institution of Civil Engineers guidance on the 1975 Act had been correctly applied and that a higher standard was needed. That led to a redesign that incorporated the higher design standard of the spillway, to which we referred earlier. Inevitably, that pushed up costs. Despite the significant local investment already on the table, the shortfall in funding amounted to around £2 million. Frustratingly, at that level of cost, the scheme is not cost-beneficial under the Treasury Green Book rules. It is not my view that the guidance is wrong. That said, the case does underline the sense in reviewing the guidance. That is a firm assurance that I can give to my hon. Friend today. A review on highly technical guidance—I have already referred to the complexity of the document—is not a quick fix, and will require broad engagement. In the mean time, I welcome efforts to reassess these proposals.

The reservoir is clearly an important part of the plans for the area. That said, I know that many of the innovative approaches that my hon. Friend has described are continuing in parallel. It may well be that we can fairly quickly achieve a different scheme that complies with the Reservoirs Act 1975 and has a sensible cost frame and a sensible cost-benefit analysis result. All the work going into reviewing the guidance will not affect the implementation of the Flood and Water Management Act 2010. If it does, Ministers will have the power to apply other criteria to assess whether, on the balance of risk, it is right that these schemes should go ahead even with the lower threshold.

The reservoir is clearly an important part of the plans for the area, so I genuinely applaud the real openness and innovation. There has been engagement with the local authorities, local landowners and many other partners, and leadership from my hon. Friend.

The Environment Agency and local partners are working hard to reassess the designs and to drive down costs. Other options that were originally put forward are also being discussed. Once consideration is complete—I expect that to be at the end of July—the agency is eager to continue working with local partners to explore what can be done while maintaining public safety.

[Anne Marie Morris (Newton Abbot) (Con)]

I am sure that the Minister will listen carefully in this case, as he did when he enabled me to have a flood scheme in Teignmouth, for which I am extremely grateful.

[Richard Benyon]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for coming to this debate; not all hon. Members come to debates to give a thumbs up. The difficulty with flood defences is that we only know that they work when issues are not raised because problems have been resolved. I know that the issue is a burden for the constituents of my hon. Friend the Member for Thirsk and Malton, the right hon. Member for Oxford East (Mr Smith) and the hon. Member for Wansbeck (Ian Lavery). There are serious problems affecting communities around the country. We are changing the way in which we approach flood funding.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lord Benyon and Anne Marie Morris

Thursday 9th September 2010 Commons Chamber

[Richard Benyon]

The hon. Lady probably saw the “Panorama” programme that touched on that subject, which starkly showed some of the problems. However, there are many areas of the seabed where scallop dredging is a perfectly legitimate and sustainable activity and does little or no damage. It has to be managed, but when we ban scallop dredgers from certain areas we have to remember that displacement can cause further problems elsewhere. That is why the marine strategy is so important: we can now zone different parts of the seas for different activities for a legitimate and, where possible, sustainable industry such as the production of scallops.

[Anne Marie Morris (Newton Abbot) (Con)]

T8. We have seen in recent weeks just how important the flooding issue is internationally. It is clearly, from what we have heard in the House this morning, an important national issue. In my constituency of Newton Abbot we have had some severe flooding incidents in 2004 and 2008. Teignmouth has been particularly badly affected and flood prevention works are taking place in Shaldon. Now would be exactly the right time for a green light to be given to the proposed plans for flood prevention work in Teignmouth. I would be grateful for the Minister’s assurance that he will give that very careful consideration.

[Richard Benyon]

My hon. Friend is right to raise concerns on behalf of the residents of the 413 properties in Teignmouth that are at risk of rapid tidal flooding. There is a procedure going on with the Environment Agency for a £4.7 million scheme, which is at an advanced stage of planning. I am happy to meet her. I understand that, if all proceeds well, construction can start in the winter of 2011.

Water Bills (South-West)

Debate between Lord Benyon and Anne Marie Morris

Monday 14th June 2010 Commons Chamber

[Richard Benyon]

I absolutely accept what the hon. Lady says. This year, the average bill for households in the region is almost £490, which is about £150 higher than the national average bill and—to refer to a particular point that she made—about £80 higher than Wessex Water bills, which is the next highest bill area. Affordability is very important. Although we often examine the average water prices across the country, we must also recognise that certain areas contain pockets of poverty where people may pay less in water bills, but utility bills may have a marked effect on their quality of life because they account for a high percentage of people’s net income.

Clearly, bills vary between water companies. That reflects the cost of providing water and sewerage services in an environmentally sustainable way. Ofwat, as the independent economic regulator of the water industry, ensures that bills are no higher than they need to be. The reasons for the relatively high bills—my use of “relative” is, of course, a relative use of the word—in the south-west were looked at by Anna Walker in her independent review of charging for household water and sewerage services. As has been said, she published her final report and recommendations last December, and I should like to take this opportunity to put on the record this Government’s recognition of the thorough and collaborative way in which she undertook her review.

As the hon. Lady said, the Walker report found that at the time of water privatisation, in 1989, South West Water had the lowest regulated asset base per property of any water and sewerage company. Since then, the company has invested about £2 billion, much of which has been spent on sewerage infrastructure and on improving sewerage services. That has brought sewerage standards in the area up to the same level as those elsewhere in England and Wales, and the cost has been met by local customers.

The cost per household has also been compounded by the relatively low number of households in the south-west, together with the relatively high proportion who live in rural areas. Those factors make it comparatively expensive to provide these households with water and sewerage services. Anna Walker recommended that Ofwat should advise the Government on options that could tackle the issue of high water bills in the south-west. The hon. Lady and those who attended a meeting with Ofwat representatives today will know that Ofwat is already working on that.

Some of the options suggested by Anna Walker could benefit all households in the region. In particular, a one-off or other financial adjustment funded by the Government, or an annual adjustment of bills financed by the Government or water customers nationally, could bring average household bills down by about £50 a year. Another option suggested by Anna Walker that would benefit all households in the south-west is a seasonal tariff, which would have the advantage of pricing water in a way that reflects the additional costs that tourists place on the water and sewerage system when they visit the region.

[Anne Marie Morris]

The Minister makes a good point, but when we examine the issue of affordability I want us to ensure that the WaterSure provision does help those who are particularly in need. I have looked at the detail of this and it is clear that it is not simply a matter of someone’s health need, the amount of money they have and the benefits that they are on. The way in which the system works means that it does not help those who really need that support, and I want the Government to consider that when we examine affordability.

[Richard Benyon]

As my hon. Friend did in her earlier intervention, she points out the important and urgent need to represent the needs of the most deprived and poorest households in the south-west. I shall discuss WaterSure in a moment and I am conscious of the amount of time available to me, but I must say that she rightly points out that when we address the urgent needs of the poorer families in the south-west we may have to examine the WaterSure provision.

Anna Walker estimated that, if water charges in the summer were four times higher than they are for the rest of the year, the average bill for all households in the region would be reduced by £60 a year. The other options identified in the review focused on providing additional support for vulnerable or low-income households, both in the south-west and elsewhere. My hon. Friend will be interested to learn that that includes a proposal to revise the national WaterSure tariff and to discount the bills of all low-income households or of low-income households with children.

Let me add that the Flood and Water Management Act 2010 enables water companies to offer social tariffs to households that struggle with their bills. However—this will be of concern to hon. Members from the south-west—the cross-subsidy under WaterSure or under social tariffs would have to be met by other customers in each company’s operating area.

As Anna Walker’s report made clear, the options are complex and, contrary to what I believed before I came to this side of the House, there certainly are no easy answers.