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Govt urged to rethink flooding job cuts, as UK faces more storms

news release

Commenting ahead of fresh flooding fears as another band of heavy rain and strong winds head for the UK, Friends of the Earth Climate Campaigner Guy Shrubsole said:  “With Britain bracing itself for fresh storms, the Government must urgently reverse its short-sighted plans to cut hundreds of jobs from the Environment Agency, who are working hard to defend the country from flooding.

“Protecting the nation from the impacts of extreme weather must be one of David Cameron’s New Year’s resolutions – and this must include making tackling climate change a top priority.”

ENDS

Notes to editors:

1. The Environment Agency’s budget is being cut by 15% over the next year. An internal memo reported on by ENDS magazine (November 2013) [£] shows that, as a result of the budget cuts, 557 staff working on flooding are earmarked to be sacked.

2. The Coalition’s new flood insurance plans fail to consider how climate change will make flooding worse in future.

For press information please contact the Friends of the Earth media team on 020 7566 1649.

Published by Friends of the Earth Trust

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