"6. What recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government on reforming the support package provided to flooded areas. ..." Craig Whittaker - View Speech
"As my right hon. Friend is aware, the funding package comes from several different Departments and, in the case of an isolated incident like that of the Calder Valley after Storm Ciara, and even after 1,200 properties were flooded, Government support for households was not triggered. Will he ensure that …..." Craig Whittaker - View Speech
"In light of the fact that places such as the Calder Valley have had three 100-year floods in the last seven and a half years, does the hon. Member not think that another review would only cost more money and waste more time? We need action. We already have this …..." Craig Whittaker - View Speech
"I wish to start by saying how disappointing it is again to see a great opportunity lost in this Opposition day debate. The Opposition have, basically and plainly, just failed to ask the right questions. We do not need an independent review to know what happened in the floods. Most …..." Craig Whittaker - View Speech
"I agree with my hon. Friend, and I shall cover a number of those points later in my speech.
It is for those reasons that I will not be voting for the Opposition’s motion but, just to show balance, I must say that the Government amendment is also a great …..." Craig Whittaker - View Speech
"I will not. I am sorry, but I have too much to say.
All Departments were sympathetic, but none was able to trigger the package without the other. I also discovered that there was a package, but that the flooding of 1,187 properties in the Calder Valley on its own …..." Craig Whittaker - View Speech
"Calderdale is the second smallest local authority in the country, and we have to spend about £750,000 before we get £50,000 back from Bellwin. Does he agree with me that the scheme needs reviewing and bringing into the modern age?..." Craig Whittaker - View Speech
"One thing that the insurance industry tells us, particularly in relation to business, is that all businesses can get insurance for flooding. The problem, of course—I wonder if the hon. Gentleman has come across the same thing—is that the premiums are so high and the excesses are phenomenal, too. I …..." Craig Whittaker - View Speech
"After the 2015 floods, we battled to get a wider catchment plan for the Calder Valley put in place, including grip blocking, reservoirs being reduced, leaky dams being addressed and tree planting. Some of those measures have been put in place, but that has been done by hundreds and hundreds …..." Craig Whittaker - View Speech
"I fully understand what the hon. Lady says, but we only have to look a few miles to the west of York, to my constituency of Calder Valley, to see what the Government have done. They have done a tremendous job in developing a full catchment plan that looks at …..." Craig Whittaker - View Speech