Austerity Together With Overflowing Damage

This motion-picture exhibit is what happened to component of the mainline betwixt the South West of the United Kingdom of Great Britain together with Northern Ireland of Britain together with Northern Republic of Ireland together with London later the latest storms. I used to move on this stretch when I lived inwards Devon. On bad days the waves could splash on to the trains, but luckily at that topographic point were no trains running when this happened.

Large parts of the United Kingdom of Great Britain together with Northern Ireland of Britain together with Northern Republic of Ireland have their wettest Jan on record, leading to widespread together with severe flooding, together with I blame the government’s austerity policy. Ridiculous? Quite the reverse. Under a sensible macroeconomic programme for world investment, the final few years would receive got seen a real large increment inwards spending on overflowing prevention. Instead nosotros saw cuts, because overflowing prevention had to receive got its part of austerity. This was a regime decision, for which they lonely are responsible.

But it gets worse for the government. Extreme weather condition events similar the 1 nosotros are at nowadays suffering are a predictable result of climate change. Just receive got a hold off at this helpful DEFRA (Department for Environment, Food together with Rural Affairs) together with Environment Agency webpage. It says: “Global temperatures are rising, causing to a greater extent than extreme weather condition events, similar flooding together with heatwaves.” As the page makes clear, this applies to the UK. So at that topographic point is a ask to increase spending on overflowing protection, together with realistically that has to hold out world spending.

Any regime government minister inwards accuse of the environs would know this. They mightiness non believe it, however, if they were a climate sceptic. Sure enough, the environs government minister Owen Patterson is merely such a sceptic. Spending past times DEFRA on finding ways to deal amongst climate alter had risen past times almost 20% nether Paterson's predecessor, Caroline Spelman, but brutal 41% later Paterson replaced her inwards September 2012, according to the Guardian. Patterson has noticeably failed to dorsum David Cameron’s “suspicion” that climate alter was behind our electrical flow severe weather. But of course of pedagogy Patterson was appointed past times Cameron.

Now at that topographic point is “controversy” over whether spending on overflowing prevention has been cutting past times this regime or not. Except at that topographic point is no existent doubt, every bit 1 hold off at the nautical chart inwards my previous post shows. (Dear BBC. This nautical chart comes from a House of Commons document. Why isn’t it on your website?) This is entirely controversial because the regime has tried to claim otherwise, past times for illustration including spending inwards the yr it took component every bit its own, fifty-fifty though it was planned past times the previous government. If you lot desire to teach into how the regime has tried to curvature the figures, encounter before, most macroeconomists handgrip that world investment should ascension inwards a recession, including to a greater extent than or less similar Ken Rogoff who receive got been quite supportive of austerity to a greater extent than generally. However, the touchstone reply when I brand this quest is that it is real hard to respect “shovel ready” projects to invest inwards quickly. This is 1 argue why I originally talked nigh overflowing prevention - it was a clear illustration of potential United Kingdom of Great Britain together with Northern Ireland of Britain together with Northern Republic of Ireland world investment that was inwards a real existent feel shovel ready!

So this looks similar a major scandal. Except, that is, inwards a province inwards which the political correct direct or indirectly controls most of the media. If you lot search using the iii words “UK flooding austerity” inwards Google or Yahoo the get-go detail that comes upwardly is my post, followed inwards Yahoo past times a report from Al Jazerra! Of course, the correct fly media ask individual to blame, together with hence knives are out for the chairman of the Environment Agency Chris Smith, who also happens to receive got previously been a Labour minister. This merely a calendar month later it was announced that the Environment Agency is beingness forced to cutting 1,500 jobs, which it says volition “have an touching on on overflowing operations such every bit adventure management, maintenance together with modelling.” As yet, those responsible for these decisions receive got non been held to account.