SUMMER EMERGENCY 2007 INQUIRY LAUNCHED (Cheltenham Liberal Democrats)

Cheltenham Liberal Democrats <info@cheltlibdems.org.uk>

SUMMER EMERGENCY 2007 INQUIRY LAUNCHED

August 30, 2007 7:15 AM

The County Council has set up a special, cross-party Task Group of seven members to investigate the causes and impacts of the recent flooding and to monitor efforts to prevent their repetition. The group will be known as the "Summer Emergency 2007 Inquiry Task Group".

Cllr Bill Crowther, Liberal Democrat spokesperson for Community Safety, proposed the formation of the Task Group at an urgent meeting of the Council following the flooding.

Cllr Crowther, who will sit upon the Task Group, said:

"I am delighted that other members of the Council took up my suggestion because I think this group will make an invaluable contribution to the prevention of future flooding. The whole of Gloucestershire was severely affected by the Summer Emergency. Dozens of different stories from members of the public and people in authority will help us piece the full picture together so that we can make informed recommendations to Government, and also take actions ourselves as an authority."

The Task Group will meet in the Guild Hall in Gloucester, and it is hoped that media and members of the public will attend to promote awareness of the inquiry and increase the variety of evidence submitted.

Cllr Roger Brown, Liberal Democrat spokesperson for the Environment, will also sit upon the Task Group.

Cllr Brown said:

"Acting along the lines of a Parliamentary inquiry, the group will invite written and verbal evidence from members of the public, local authorities, and other key national and local agencies, such as Severn Trent and Thames Water companies, the National Grid, and both regions of the Environment Agency. The group hope to report its conclusions to Parliament's inquiry."

The Task Group will meet on the 4th, 11th and 25th of October, and it is currently planned to complete its report by the 2nd of November. This report will then be debated by the County Council's Scrutiny Management Committee on the 7th of November before being submitted to the Full Council on the 21st of November.