Call for ‘rethink’ of flood defences as swathes of England hit

Britain needs a "complete rethink" of its flood defences after swathes of northern England were inundated by rivers breaking their banks in recent days, a government agency said on Monday.

Hundreds of soldiers have been deployed to evacuate residents and help emergency services. Local authorities said about 500 properties were flooded in the historic city of York, and 2,000 homes and 400 businesses in Leeds.

Defences bolstered

Flood defences have been bolstered in recent years, but that has not prevented some residents of northern England, including the Lake District, from having their homes repeatedly flooded. “We are moving from known extremes to unknown extremes,” David Rooke, deputy chief executive of the

Environment Agency

, told BBC radio. “We will need to have a complete rethink.”

Prime minister David Cameron defended the government's record on flood defences during a visit to York, saying that it had committed to spending £2.3 billion (€3.1 billion) over the next six years.

There was a lull in the heavy rain on Monday, and river levels were said to be stabilising. But nine severe flood warnings remained in place, and further rain was expected. – (Reuters)