Sink or swim: Flooding victims’ and a recurring nightmare – The Yorkshire Post says

This remains a national emergency and it is only down to chance, and the vagaries of the weather, that Yorkshire has escaped the worst of Storm Christoph for now. But the situation can change quickly – more rain is forecast as rivers still rise downstream – and this remains a living nightmare for families living in areas particularly prone to flooding. The fear in their voices remains discernible.

And that is why they will be sceptical, even incredulous, at Environment Secretary George Eustice’s supposedly new promise to review the funding formula which is used to allocate new money for flood defences in areas that frequently flood.

After all, it’s taken the Minister nearly a year to accept the inadequacy of existing arrangements – there’s no apparent time-scale on the review – and Yorkshire is still, let it be remembered, waiting for the region-wide summit that Mr Eustice promised during a visit to flood-hit York last February.

The type of indifference that has been symptomatic of successive governments, it is, frankly, scandalous, that flood-threatened residents are – again – left to expect the worst rather than being able to hope for the best. And, in case it has escaped the attention of Defra, it will take decades for the PM’s trees to mature sufficiently to fulfil their purpose, hence a need for strengthened regional flood prevention strategies so that residents are not left to sink or swim – literally.

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