Anger over flood defence cash

UCKFIELD county councillor Chris Dowling has joined the ranks of those criticising the Government for not releasing funds fast enough for a flood defence scheme in the town, which was badly hit in the October deluge of last year.

He said this week that he echoed the comments of council leader Cllr Peter Jones who declared that he was very disappointed that the Government did not acknowledge the fears of people in Uckfield and Lewes who had suffered more than most.

Cllr Dowling said the Environment Agency had presented options for flood defences in Uckfield and a decision on a preferred option for the town would be made in April.

And he added: 'The need for the work to be done is undeniable and it is vital that the Government comes up with the funding to undertake the task.

'We need the money and we need it fast.

The Government has indicated that the spending for Sussex will increase from 5.1 million in 2001/02 to 9.6 million for 2002/03.

But it did not give detailed information about proposals for Lewes and Uckfield, even though council leader Cllr Peter Jones highlighted the plight of the two towns and other areas of the county in a recent letter to Environment Minister Margaret Beckett.

'We said that schemes put forward by the Environment Agency to improve river defences at towns like Lewes and Uckfield will cost millions of pounds over several years, he added.

'Local councils and council taxpayers cannot afford to pay for these schemes and it is up to Government to help.

'We are very disappointed it didn t really acknowledge the fears of people in Lewes and Uckfield who have suffered more than most.

And Cllr Roger Thomas, the council s representative on the Sussex Local Flood Defence Committee, said: 'Any extra resources have to be welcomed.

'If you look a bit closer at the figures, they include engineering work underway at Pevensey Bay and Chichester, and in fact the Kent Local Flood Defence Committee had already made provision for Robertsbridge.

'However, I am still concerned about Etchingham. Railtrack have failed to maintain clearing of culverts at Etchingham Station. Government should investigate.

'The Government could have done a lot more to allay the fear of thousands of residents whose homes and businesses were devastated by last year s floods but have seen no improvement in their own local flood defences.