Sarah Wollaston
Main Page: Sarah Wollaston (Liberal Democrat - Totnes)(10 years, 3 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text
Brandon Lewis
I am sorry if the hon. Gentleman feels that way about his hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham, Erdington (Jack Dromey), who used that very comparison himself.
Dr Sarah Wollaston (Totnes) (Con)
To return to flooding, can the Minister confirm whether he will be making an application to the solidarity fund? I know that the threshold is high, but if it is taken on a regional basis that would be a really helpful source of additional funding for the south-west.
Brandon Lewis
My hon. Friend tempts me away from the local government finance settlement. The Government look at such things, but the fund currently has a threshold of about £3.7 billion, and the Government would have to pay back the majority of what we got because of the way the mechanism works.