Alex Davies-Jones, Labour MP for Pontypridd, said: “This is a big wake-up call. Areas are flooding which have not flooded before.
"We have to make sure they don’t flood again but also tackle climate change long term.
“The Government must wake up to the fact we need to do something drastic now or we will have more situations like this.”
Emergency services use a boat to rescue residents amid flooding in Hereford(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
Environment Agency chief Sir James Bevan warned the crisis “is not yet over”, telling people living near the Ouse and Severn rivers to be on high alert as “significant flooding” is expected later this week.
His agency issued a record 600 warnings over the weekend and 420 properties were flooded.
“Something has changed,” he said. “The climate emergency is driving more violent weather, higher seas and heavier rainfall. We need an approach.”
Philip Davies, Tory MP for Shipley, had said “precious little” was done after the 2015 floods and urged the government to “pull its finger out”.
But Sir James said “a lot is being done”, highlighting a ￡2.6billion investment in flood prevention and a further ￡4billion being offered for the next few years. He added: “You can’t make the whole country flood-proof.”
He also said “individuals have a role to play”, adding that one in six British homes is at risk of flooding.
Emergency personnel rescue people in a flooded street(Image: REUTERS)
