Councillor John Osman, Leader of Somerset County Council, hosted Secretary of State Owen Paterson MP in Somerset yesterday to discuss the 20 year flood action plan in progress.
The last time the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs was in Somerset, he challenged Somerset County Council and its partners to produce a 20 year flood action plan to prevent widespread flooding in the area again.
The plan was produced within his six weeks deadline and approved by his office last month. Since then, dredging has begun and Somerset County Council unveiled £20m worth of proposals to help prevent significant flooding in the Levels again and improve the County’s roads.
Cllr Osman said: “ This is an important day for Somerset. On the same day we reveal schemes that will significantly reduce the risk of flooding in homes, prevent communities from being cut off and prevent major Somerset roads from being shut for weeks at time, Owen Paterson MP, Secretary of State, visits Somerset to review our progress. We had an extremely productive meeting where we discussed the 20 year action plan and issues such as future funding and resilience.”
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Press Release, April 15, 2014