Extreme Climate and Weather Events: National Resilience
(Limited Text - Ministerial Extracts only)
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The Minister of State, Cabinet Office (Dan Jarvis)
Let me begin by thanking my hon. Friend the Member for Truro and Falmouth (Jayne Kirkham) for securing this important debate. Her dedicated advocacy for the resilience of rural communities, particularly in the wake of Storm Goretti, is well-known across this House and in her part of the world. She has spoken powerfully this evening about the experience of communities in Cornwall, following recent extreme weather events, and I join her in paying tribute to the local communities, first responders and emergency services that step forward in these moments of crisis.
The Government’s first responsibility is to keep the country safe. We are absolutely committed to taking all measures necessary to build national resilience to external shocks or threats that could cause disruption to our way of life, now and in the future. The UK benefits from world-leading weather warning and information services, which provide information and advice to the public when bad weather is forecast. Weather events can have wide-ranging impacts on communities, including on homes, health, transport, energy and communications, and the relevant lead Department for each of those affected areas has a responsibility to work closely with stakeholders on the recovery from an emergency.
We are absolutely committed to building resilience on both a national and a local level, and while we acknowledge the Climate Change Committee’s assessment of the third national adaptation programme, we are not simply relying on short-term measures. Alongside delivering the actions in the programme to address climate risks to the UK, we are taking significant, long-term action now to become more resilient to the effects of climate change, such as flooding and overheating. We are building new reservoirs and cutting water leaks to help secure our water supplies. This includes a record £10.5 billion investment in flood defences to protect 900,000 properties.
Dan Jarvis
I will make a little bit of progress. It also includes £30 million for coastal adaptation pilots in the East Riding of Yorkshire, Norfolk and Suffolk, and £104 billion in private investment for new water infrastructure.
I was privileged to meet community members and first responders shortly after Storm Goretti, and to hear at first hand about the challenges they faced. I was very pleased last week to see His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales visit Helston, in the constituency of the hon. Member for St Ives (Andrew George), shining a spotlight on the strong spirit and resilience of the people of Cornwall.
In the period preceding the storm, our world-leading weather warning service played a significant part in the initial Government response. The storm made landfall on Thursday 8 January; the Met Office issued a rare red national severe weather warning across the Isles of Scilly and parts of Cornwall. The storm brought a combination of heavy rain, significant snow and strong winds to England and Wales. Emergency alerts were quickly dispatched to half a million residents in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, advising them to remain indoors until the danger had passed. The conditions resulted in widespread power outages and disruption to transport networks. The national response was managed by the Cabinet Office, which co-ordinated meetings with health and environmental experts and senior Government officials. The Cabinet Office has committed to a comprehensive review of the response to Storm Goretti, which aims to ensure that lessons are captured across Government to improve our response to future severe weather events.
The Government are also acutely aware of the challenges faced by British farmers due to extreme weather, which can impact harvests and consequently influence food prices. Despite these challenges, the UK maintains a resilient food supply chain that is underpinned by diverse sources; robust domestic production; and reliable import routes. During a recent visit to Aberystwyth University, I visited the Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences, a leading research institute dedicated to advancing the sustainable production of food, feed, and plant-based resources. I also met Aled Jones, the former president of the National Farmers’ Union Cymru, and we discussed the vital importance of securing our nation’s food supply. I recognise that the Government must work collaboratively with farmers and the NFU to ensure that our food supply is safeguarded for the long term.
As has been mentioned, our telecommunications networks are a vital part of the UK’s critical national infrastructure and our emergency response in weather-related crises. They support the functioning of essential services and keep people connected when they need it most. The public switched telephone network often relies on overhead cables that can easily be damaged during severe winds, and most handsets rely on power supplies. Telecoms companies are upgrading landlines from analogue to digital, with over two thirds of lines across the UK already having been migrated. We recognise that telecoms resilience is underpinned by a resilient power supply. Through close co-ordination with the energy sector, the emergency planning community and industry, we are strengthening back-up power arrangements, improving situational awareness, and ensuring that the sector is ready to activate mitigation measures when risks escalate.
