Boris Johnson under fire for response to flooding
Prime minister accused of ‘utterly outrageous’ lack of concern
Boris Johnson has been accused of an “utterly outrageous” lack of concern about the severe floods that have caused devastation and misery in Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and South Yorkshire.
After the floods hit parts of Nottinghamshire, Simon Greaves, the Labour leader of Bassetlaw district council, said the prime minister was “preoccupied with electioneering” when he should have been coordinating a national response to the flooding.
Speaking to The Guardian, Greaves said the government had a “fantastic opportunity to step up to the plate and take emergency action” but were “concentrating more on the general election campaign than they were on people’s lives”.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
He added: “They had an opportunity to take action [and] they consciously chose not to. I think it’s utterly outrageous.”
The criticism comes after Jeremy Corbyn called on the prime minister to “take personal charge” of the situation yesterday. Blaming government cuts for the severity of the damage, the Labour leader promised to inject more funding into flood defences.
He denounced Johnson for not declaring a national emergency, saying: “If this had happened in Surrey, not Yorkshire or the east Midlands, it seems far more likely that a national emergency would have been declared.”
The Liberal Democrats have pledged £5bn for flood prevention measures and their leader, Jo Swinson, has echoed Corbyn’s call for the government to declare the floods a “national emergency”.
There was further criticism from local politicians. David Hughes, the mayor of Matlock, said: “Obviously if people are flooded for days and days on end then it is an emergency for them and it seems to be over a large area.”
Tony Nicholson, a Green councillor in the Doncaster suburb of Bentley, which remained under a severe flood warning yesterday, echoed Corbyn’s sentiment, saying: “If this was in another area this would be deemed a national emergency. This is devastating for people’s lives.”
However, Jane Cox, the leader of the Conservative group on Doncaster council, said of the flooding: “I firmly believe it should not be politicised.”
The prime minister chaired a meeting of the government’s emergency committee Cobra yesterday.
More than 1,200 properties have been evacuated in northern England. A woman died after being swept away by floodwater in Darley Dale near Matlock.
–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––For a round-up of the most important stories from around the world - and a concise, refreshing and balanced take on the week’s news agenda - try The Week magazine. Get your first six issues for £6–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Ukraine hints at end to 'hot war' with Russia in 2025
Talking Points Could the new year see an end to the worst European violence of the 21st Century?
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
What does the FDIC do?
In the Spotlight Deposit insurance builds confidence in the banking system
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
2024: The year of conspiracy theories
IN THE SPOTLIGHT Global strife and domestic electoral tensions made this year a bonanza for outlandish worldviews and self-justifying explanations
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Is there a Christmas curse on Downing Street?
Today's Big Question Keir Starmer could follow a long line of prime ministers forced to swap festive cheer for the dreaded Christmas crisis
By The Week UK Published
-
John Prescott: was he Labour's last link to the working class?
Today's Big Quesiton 'A total one-off': tributes have poured in for the former deputy PM and trade unionist
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Last hopes for justice for UK's nuclear test veterans
Under the Radar Thousands of ex-service personnel say their lives have been blighted by aggressive cancers and genetic mutations
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Will Donald Trump wreck the Brexit deal?
Today's Big Question President-elect's victory could help UK's reset with the EU, but a free-trade agreement with the US to dodge his threatened tariffs could hinder it
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Anger over flood response swells as Spain explodes in protests
THE EXPLAINER The Spanish government is reeling as furious citizens look for answers in the wake of October's catastrophic flooding
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
What is the next Tory leader up against?
Today's Big Question Kemi Badenoch or Robert Jenrick will have to unify warring factions and win back disillusioned voters – without alienating the centre ground
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
What is Lammy hoping to achieve in China?
Today's Big Question Foreign secretary heads to Beijing as Labour seeks cooperation on global challenges and courts opportunities for trade and investment
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Is Britain about to 'boil over'?
Today's Big Question A message shared across far-right groups listed more than 30 potential targets for violence in the UK today
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published