Letter from Parliament - Liz McInnes MP

Liz McInnes MP

The Christmas holiday has been ruined for many people here in Heywood and Middleton and the Rochdale area, due to the devastating floods which have hit us in the last few days.

As in many other communities across the north of England, people have suffered damage to their homes, roads have been closed, and residents and businesses have gone for long periods without power.

Our emergency services, many volunteers, as well as staff and councillors at Rochdale Council have reacted superbly to the situation.

I have been out and about around Heywood and Middleton to see the damage myself. Norden and Bamford were hit, and in Heywood there was flooding at Queen's Park and Heap Bridge.

In Middleton, the flooding closed Manchester Old Road which has caused a lot of disruption. The atrocious weather even caused a 20ft sinkhole on the M62 between junctions 19 and 20, causing massive disruption to travelers on Boxing Day.

Rochdale town centre was hit extremely badly by the unprecedented rainfall, and Rochdale Council - which serves my constituency of Heywood and Middleton - have been offering food, rest and advice at the Town Hall.

While not in my constituency, I would like to offer my sympathy to the dozens of business owners and hundreds of residents who have been so badly affected in Rochdale town centre.

I would like to pay tribute to all our emergency services and to the many volunteers I met who were helping clear away debris and take care of residents.

Also, I would like to thank the Council for providing help, advice and shelter and for their prompt response during the holiday period. I'm pleased to see that they are offering financial assistance to affected households in the form of £500 and council tax relief, plus I understand that businesses will be able to claim rates relief for the period they were unable to trade. Council Leader Richard Farnell, senior councillors and Council officers deserve a lot of credit for this response.

Just before Christmas, in my role as a Shadow Minister for Communities and Local Government, I made the case in parliament for better protection for electricity substations from flooding. The last few days has emphasised the importance of adequate defences for our power stations and a properly funded flood defence policy, with the North getting its fair share.

I fully support the calls for cross-party working on our flood defences, and for policies to be developed and implemented that span party lines to develop a proper plan for the whole of the UK. I hope the government will listen.