Last Friday I attended a specially convened meeting of the Axholme Internal Drainage Board(IDB) which was once again considering the proposals in the Environment Agency's River Trent Flood Catchment Plan to reduce flood risk management on the Isle of Axholme and North West lincs (Gunnness, Burringham etc). the meeting was attended by representatives of the Environment Agency (EA) who came armed with hard hats!

The EA confirmed that it was their intention to reduce the expenditure on flood risk management in the area and that Government rules meant they had to concentrate their expenditure on where the population was. In other words, the Government expects urban areas to be protected at the expense of rural areas such as ours. The EA would not however say how this reduction in expenditure would be achieved and confirmed that there were no detailed plans available yet. Many IDB members criticised the lack of consultation over these proposals which only appeared last November.

Despite some clever local spin by Labour, it was confirmed that the Flood Catchment Plan was only published last November. Labour's cheap spin on an issue we should all be working together on is clearly aimed at deflecting attention from the fact that these proposals are only being drawn up because of their Government's policies!

The EA did say they felt they had learned the lessons about the lack of consultation. I found this laughable as they said exactly the same thing last year when the River Aire Flood Catchment Planwas published which went even further in proposing increasing flooding in the Snaith, Arimyn and Rawcliffe areas to protect Leeds. We are still awaiting the final proposals for the River Aire and I remain Vice Chairman of the action group which was formed to fight those plans.

The EA reps confirmed that the Government had left them millions of pounds short in what they needed to complete the flood works required nationally and that as a result tough decision had to be taken. Many IDB members expressed their concern that they felt our area was been sacrificed for the benefit of urban areas where there are more voters! They also pointed at that as food security was such an important issue at the moment, the Isle should be given extra protection because of the fertile farmland locally.

The EA confirmed that the next stages would be as followed -

• The Flood Catchment Plan will go forward for adoption in April
• Work will then begin on detailed strategies for each area, subject to money being made available
• The strategies will take up to 18 months to prepare and will then be presented to the IDB's, Council and public in general.

They also confirmed that the detailed strategies could force the EA to adopt a different policy for the Isle which may be more acceptable locally. I have to say this was an incredible statement and one which many members of the IDB picked up on. Why ask residents to agree to a policy proposal, with liteel real detail, if the EA are then going to produce detailed plans which could alter everything? Surely it would be far more sensible to do the detailed work first!

It was clear from the meeting that we need to continue our fight to protect the Isle and North West Lincs by opposing these proposals.