Flood Control

Miss McIntosh
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the number of mutual aid agreements established by local authorities following the recommendations of the Pitt report on flooding.

Huw Irranca-Davies
We estimate there are hundreds of such agreements in place across England and Wales. These agreements cover a whole range of aspects of mutual aid between local authorities and between organisations which might be called upon during wide-area emergencies. In December 2008, guidance to local authorities on establishing mutual aid protocols was published jointly by the Cabinet Office, the Local Government Association and the Society of Local Authority Chief Executives. The impact of this guidance on the number and standard of mutual aid arrangements will be surveyed during the course of this year.