This is an opportunity for Members of Council to ask the Mayor, Members of the Executive or the Chairman of any Committee or Sub-Committee a question on notice under Procedure Rule 10.2.

The Mayor reported that a question had been received under Procedure Rule 10.2.

Councillor Mrs. Brophy asked the following question for which he had given notice:

“Councillors will remember at a Trafford Council in October 2009 that I asked what we are doing to prepare for the increased risk of flooding in Trafford and across Greater Manchester due to climate change as outlined by the Head of the Environment Agency, in a speech around this time.

Many areas in the south of the country and beyond are experiencing unprecedented flooding. Only last week across the North West and locally in Trafford we had severe storms, which caused a number of trees in the Borough to come down and our motorways closed for periods of time. What is Trafford Council doing to ensure that our residents are protected and warned about flooding and other forms of extreme weather, as climate change starts to impact on all our lives?”

Councillor Mitchell, Executive Member for Highways and Environment responded to the question and reported that in the last week Council officers had attended over 450 incidents in the Borough, responding to emergency calls that had come about as a result of the extreme weather. Most of these incidents related to fallen trees and to his knowledge none related to flooding.

In terms of flooding, Councillor Mitchell assured Members that the Council was active on several fronts to ensure that residents were protected from and warned about flooding and other forms of extreme weather. The Executive Member then outlined the work of the Council in this area, detailing:

work with the Environment Agency to ensure that water levels on the Borough’s main rivers were monitored; how flood warning information is disseminated; emergency plan operations; and regular discussions with Agency staff;

partnership working with the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities to update the Trafford Multi Agency Flood Response Plan and the Greater Manchester Strategic Multi-Agency Flood Plan;

requiring developers to address the issue of climate change, including flood risk, as part of their development proposals following the adoption of the Trafford Core Strategy in January 2012;

publication, in response to the Pitt review and subsequent legislation, of the Council’s first Draft Local Flood Risk Management Strategy on 17 February 2014 for a 6 week consultation.

Councillor Mitchell stated that the Council was in a very strong position to deal with extreme weather conditions, with a full management framework in place on a 24 hour 7 day basis. This incorporated senior management from the beginning and clear lines of communication. Reporting on the swift and effective response to the violent storms which occurred on 12 February 2014 and which did so much damage in Trafford, the Executive Member envisaged that all outstanding storm damage works would be completed by 28 February 2014.

In asking her supplementary question, Councillor Mrs. Brophy referred to the redeployment and restructuring of Environment Agency staff and concern that it would be properly prepared for further incidents, particularly given the response to her question in October 2009 which indicated that 300 homes had been identified by the Environment Agency as potentially at risk of flooding in the Timperley area alone. Councillor Brophy, therefore, asked as a supplementary question what support might be offered to people at risk?

Councillor Mitchell indicated that he was not aware of specific incidents that would cause concern with the Environment Agency and that a lot of its responsibility had transferred to the Council. This had given rise to the consultation document and he invited Councillor Mrs. Brophy to feedback her views.