Last week the new Minister for Water and Flooding Emma Hardy convened a new Flood Resilience Taskforce. See here for info. 

George Freeman MP who has led the co-ordination on the response on flooding in Mid Norfolk said, 'I was really pleased to read last week that the new Minister responsible has convened a new Flood Resilience Taskforce. This sounds a very promising step in co-ordinating the cross Government work needed to cope with the serious challenges faced by now hundreds of thousands of households every year.

I have therefore written to the Minister to request an urgent meeting so that I can update her on inland flooding in Mid Norfolk and the work I have been doing as the member for Mid Norfolk including:

1. setting up the Mid Norfolk Flood Partnership in 2021 which brings together the multiple agencies with often fragmented and overlapping responsibilities. It has proved to be very effective in fostering joint working between the County Council, District Council, Anglian Water and town/parish councils.

2. convening the first Norfolk Inland Flood Summit in the next few months which will bring together all the c35 (!) agencies with responsibility for flood prevention in the county to report on their work, capture accurate data maps of flooding, and agree a Norfolk Flood Prevention Plan.

3. drafting and introducing my Inland Flooding Prevention (Responsibilities and Liabilities) Bill in the new Parliament to change the law on planning and flooding liabilities to ensure adequate devolution of powers and funding to Local Flood Authorities, and that developers, water companies and other key stakeholders cannot shirk their responsibilities.

4. coordinating with the newly elected MPs for the other 10 worst affected counties to form an Inland Flooding All Party Campaign Group.

Once I have met with the minister I will be providing an update as I push hard to get the new government to act on the issue of inland flooding in Norfolk and in all counties affected across this country.