Flooding Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateDepartment: Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
Lord Fowler
Main Page: Lord Fowler (Crossbench - Life peer)Department Debates - View all Lord Fowler's debates with the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
(3 years, 10 months ago)
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Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park (Con) [V]
My noble friend was, I think, referring to dredging, which certainly can play a part in flood-risk management. However, the truth is that it can also make flooding worse downstream. Over each of the past three years, the EA has spent between £50 million and £55 million to manage the flow in channels. This allows the EA to dredge around 200 kilometres of river channel every year. Where there is evidence that dredging will reduce flood risk without increasing flooding downstream, and where it meets the Government’s criteria and is affordable, we will do it. However, we need to make sure that it is done in the right place; otherwise, we might end up with perverse outcomes.
The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler)
The time allowed for this Question has elapsed, and that brings us to end of Question Time.