Category: Press Releases

In view of fears about more flooding in the coming months, John Redwood has asked the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when the Environment Agency will announce its new plans for the improvement of flood defences, and what the current state of the EA-maintained flood defence infrastructure is.

In a written answer received today, Mr Redwood has been told that the EA’s proposals for the improvement of flood defences will not be announced until February 2008, pending a review of its business plans in light of the Comprehensive Spending Review.

According to the latest figures for EA-maintained flood defence infrastructure, only 55% of raised walls and embankments are in a good or better condition. For other defences such as sluices and outfalls, this figure is a slightly higher 69%.

For the questions in full, see below.

<strong>Mr. Redwood: </strong>To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) when the Environment Agency will announce its new plans for the improvement of flood defences; [161944]

(2) what recent assessment the Environment Agency has made of the present condition of flood defences for which they are responsible. [161945]

<strong>Mr. Woolas: </strong>The Environment Agency is currently reviewing its business plans for 2008-09 in light of the recent Comprehensive Spending Review settlement. It will announce its proposals for the improvement of flood defences in February 2008.

The Environment Agency currently inspects assets on a risk based programme and assesses the national position on a quarterly basis.

The proportion (by length) of flood defences such as raised walls and embankments, maintained by the Environment Agency that were in good or better condition in April 2007 was 55 per cent. A further 40 per cent. were in a fair condition.

The proportion (by number) of flood defence structures, such as sluices and outfalls, maintained by the Environment Agency that were in good or better condition in April 2007 was 69 per cent. A further 26 per cent. were in a fair condition.

Yesterday in Parliament, John Redwood urged the Secretary of State for Health, Alan Johnson, to take immediate action on the unacceptable level of hospital-acquired infections. Waiting eighteen months for a new quango to tackle the problem will not address people’s justifiable fears of hospital treatment.

Later, during the debate on entitlement to work in the UK and Security Industry Authority licensing checks, Mr Redwood asked the Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, if she could tell the House how many illegal immigrants are working in the public sector and what she proposes to do about it. The Home Secretary declined to provide a figure.

For the questions in full, taken from Hansard, see below.

<strong>Mr. John Redwood (Wokingham) (Con): </strong>Given the urgency of tackling the more than 6,000 deaths a year from hospital-acquired infections in our hospitals, why does not the Secretary of State take urgent action on the issue, rather than waiting 18 months so that a new quango can be set up? Whatever that quango might be able to do should be done now, because the problem exists now and people should not live in fear of dying from going to hospital.

<strong>The Secretary of State for Health (Alan Johnson):</strong> If the right hon. Gentleman is referring to the care and quality commission, I should say that legislation needs to go through for the regulator to be given those extra powers. However, that does not mean that we should freeze everything in aspic. As was mentioned earlier, there are a whole series of initiatives. I did not mention the doubling of the number of improvement teams, nor the fund of money available to nurses at the front line so that they can access things, such as curtains and fittings, that they know very well need to be replaced. I did not mention that we are going to move from 2,000 to 5,000 matrons and that they will be given power over the cleaning contract and given whistleblower protection to report on such issues to the trust and beyond. The right hon. Gentleman is right to be concerned about the issue; it is a matter of concern to the public. However, there are a whole series of measures, none of which we need wait 18 months for.

<strong>Mr. John Redwood (Wokingham) (Con):</strong> Since the Home Secretary reminded all public sector employers of their duties under the legislation, how many illegal immigrants have been found to be working in the public sector, and what action is she proposing to take about that?
Jacqui Smith: Never mind whether it is the public or the private sector, there is rightly continued enforcement activity, including, for example, the 3,700 successful Border and Immigration Agency enforcement operations against illegal workers last year. All that work would have been decimated by the Conservative party’s proposals in its manifesto at the last election to halve the money made available to the agency. It is a bit rich for Conservative Members to demand enforcement activity when they would have halved the agency’s ability to carry it out.

Last Thursday (the 8th November) saw Adam Connell and Dominic Lister of The Emmbrook School debate their way to victory in the final of the Wokingham Schools’ Parliamentary Debating Competition.

Proposing the motion that ‘The UN has failed to make or keep the peace’, Adam and Dominic provided the well researched arguments and quick witted delivery that the competition’s audiences have come to expect from the Emmbrook team.

Opposing the motion were Amber Anderson and Rebecca Knowlson of Luckley Oakfield School, whose incisive interventions and clearly formulated speeches kept the Emmbrook debaters on their toes.

Choosing a winning team at the end of such heated debate was likened by Donald MacDonald, Chairman of the Judges, to judging a boxing match: despite powerful blows from both sides, the competitors were still standing at the final bell, so it had to be awarded on points. Scoring was described as very close.

At the end of the evening, Adam and Dominic were awarded the John Redwood Cup. A multi-media projector for their school, courtesy of sponsors 3M, was presented to their teacher, Diana Collins.

Speaking after the event, John Redwood said: "There has been both fun and serious argument over the competition as a whole, debating everything from hugging a hoodie to Chelsea tractors, and from school exams to the work of the United Nations. Emmbrook have emerged as worthy winners, whilst Luckley Oakfield pushed them hard in the final. I look forward to welcoming both teams to the House of Commons."