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Flooding in Cumbria

My Lords, I am grateful to both noble Lords for the constructive way in which they have addressed this sombre Statement, and in particular for joining in with the tributes to those who have sadly lost their lives in these events. It is certainly the case that we needed to learn lessons from the 2007 floods, and we have been aided in that by the excellent Pitt report which has guided us on the legislation now before the other place. I am grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Taylor, for indicating that the Bill is necessary and that we will have co-operation as and when the Bill passes through this House and goes on to receive Royal Assent. There is no doubt that it contains recommendations and proposals on which there is broad agreement, and which we already knew were essential before the disaster in Cumbria this weekend. It has not been a wake-up call but it has reinforced the Government’s determination to ensure that action is taken as rapidly as possible. I accept the point of the noble Lord, Lord Taylor, about the role of insurers. The ABI has responded already and indicated its eagerness to play its part. The noble Lord, Lord Livsey, referred to the resources which will be necessary to repair the damage to property and business. Government resources, of course, are overwhelmingly concentrated upon infrastructure and restoring the capacity of communities to rebuild themselves. Private insurance will have to come into play in relation to businesses and homes and we are grateful that the ABI has indicated that it will deal with claims as rapidly as possible. We are considering the point raised by the noble Lord, Lord Livsey, in regard to the flood warning for the southern part of the Lake District and Kendal. The warning system worked elsewhere where it was in place. However, for reasons that we have not yet been able to identify, it does not seem to have worked as effectively as it ought to have done in Kendal. I can assure the House that we are looking at this as a matter of urgency. The noble Lord, Lord Livsey, indicated that help will be needed by local authorities. I have indicated two sources of help: the money that will be available through the regional development agency from the resources of the Department for Business; and the Prime Minister identified £1 million which he wanted to see devoted to assistance in recovery. However, it is a major task. Given the geography of the Lake District and these areas, water sweeping away bridges will destroy effective communications. The Royal Engineers may well have a part to play, but any such action would be of a limited kind and it will be some time before all communications are restored. It will be a major priority, but the House will appreciate the severe amount of damage caused by the destruction of so many bridges by the force of the water. I am grateful to both noble Lords for their constructive response to the Statement.