VISIT FLOOD TOWN - MP's CALL TO MINISTER

He challenged DEFRA Minister, Ian Pearson, over the insufficient level of funding provided for flood defences by the government and invited him to visit Lewes to witness the problems experienced by local people since the 2000 floods which hit the town.

Mr Baker questioned the Minister for Climate Change and the Environment during a packed meeting of the Associate Parliamentary Group on Flood Prevention, which he was chairing.

He also quizzed the Minister over whether the poor level of finance set aside for the provision of flood defences and DEFRA generally was a symptom of the government's lack of co-ordination with regards tackling climate change generally.

The Minister assured the group that the government was taking the issue of tackling climate change seriously and outlined how he was putting forward the case to the Treasury for a longer term funding settlement for flood prevention.

Mr Baker will now be formally writing to the Minister to request a date for his visit to the local area.