Flooding

Henry Smith Excerpts

Monday 6th January 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Paterson]

To the best of my knowledge, the only case was a couple of days ago, when 90 soldiers helped to fill sandbags at very short notice in Maidstone.

[Henry Smith (Crawley) (Con)]

I, too, welcome the comments that my right hon. Friend has made about better passenger information, following the incident in which people were stranded at Gatwick over Christmas and the new year. Will he join me in thanking West Sussex fire and rescue service for rescuing a number of elderly residents in Ifield Green? Will he also join me in recognising that, were it not for the significant capital investment in the Environment Agency’s scheme at Tilgate lake, which was realised over the past few years, the flooding in my constituency could have been a lot worse?

[Mr Paterson]

I thank my hon. Friend, and I am glad he endorses our views on getting information across to the public in various forums, particularly at his nearby airport. I am delighted to hear that the flood scheme worked effectively, and his constituents will be among those in the 1 million properties that were protected during this difficult period.