Oral Answers to Questions

Catherine Fookes Excerpts

Thursday 22nd October 2026 Commons Chamber

[Emma Hardy]

The hon. Gentleman raises a really important point. We used to have the flood taskforce; just last week, we held the first meeting of the new flood and drought taskforce, which was attended by four Ministers—from DEFRA, the Cabinet Office, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, and the Department for Transport. The focus of that meeting absolutely was how we can be most prepared. I am determined that this year, because of El Niño and the concerns that the hon. Gentleman rightly raised, we will be more prepared than ever before. That is why we have done everything from targeting children and families, all the way through to looking at our transport system, resilience across Government and local resilience forums to see whether they are ready if the worst should happen. We are going out to every area and talking to Ministers across Government, so that they can contact the organisations for which they are responsible and ask them if they are prepared and ready. Although I cannot stop it raining, I want us to be as prepared as possible when it does rain.

[Catherine Fookes (Monmouthshire) (Lab)]

As hon. Members will remember, it is almost a year since devastating floods hit Monmouth, and parts of the town have flooded several times in the past few years. I spoke to a constituent yesterday who had been flooded in a previous flood. Such was the damage, they were not able to get back in their house for two years. Will the Minister look at upstream flood resilience measures, over the border in England, to reduce the risk of flooding to communities like mine?

[Emma Hardy]

My hon. Friend raises an important point. I remember that flood. I commend her now, as I did then, on the compassionate, caring and supportive way in which she went out there to help her constituents, and I know how much the events affected her. She is right to talk about catchment-based flood management, looking upstream and using more nature-based solutions. I know the Environment Agency is working well with its Welsh counterparts to see what more can be done in this area.