Switch to an accessible version of this website which is easier to read. (requires cookies)

Thunderstorms and Flooding - You Cannot Be Serious!

July 15, 2009 12:00 AM
In Stockport Express

Andrew StunellStockport was hit by some of the most spectacular and torrential thunderstorms for a long time last week - leading to blocked roads, flooded cellars, and worse in many areas. Even my own garage took a hit. For some people in Romiley it was the third time their homes had been swamped in a year.

You are right - it was worse than usual. What the boffins call 'an extreme weather event'. There are going to be more and more of them as climate change turns from being a rather boring story you hear about on BBC 2 into real life, affecting our own lives and property.

It's going to cost millions just for bigger drains and sewers in Stockport, let alone for the whole country. So when I stood up in Parliament last week to call for more action to tackle climate change I wasn't just following a fad, it was part of an urgent fight to slow down the rise in carbon emissions which are now a real threat to us all.

The trouble is that too many people - and politicians - still don't get it. Faced with the facts they are still 'disputing the line call'. Make changes to our lifestyles? You cannot be serious!

So the Government still hasn't put in place the simple measures passed in my Act of Parliament back in 2004 that could have already saved several million tons of carbon emission by starting to get our homes more energy efficient - saving money as well as the planet.

When it comes to taking action on the most serious threat facing our world, it is they who cannot be serious.

So get out the sandbags, and standby for some more thunderstorms.

What would you like to do next?

  • Subscribe for updates

    Read updates from this website in your desktop or online news reader

    • On a news reader website

      •  
      •  
      •  

      In a desktop news reader or a website not listed above

      •  
    • Example monthly digest email
      •  
      •  
      •  
    • If you submit your email address, the Liberal Democrats and their elected representatives may use the information you have provided to contact you from time to time about issues we think you may find of interest. Some of the contacts may be automated. You can opt out of some or all contacts at any time by contacting us.


    • Generate different image

    Join our email list

    • If you submit your email address, the Liberal Democrats and their elected representatives may use the information you have provided to contact you from time to time about issues we think you may find of interest. Some of the contacts may be automated. You can opt out of some or all contacts at any time by contacting us.


    • Generate different image

    Follow the party's activity on...

  • Share this page

    Share this page on another website

    Link to this page

    On websites and printed material:
    andrewstunell.org.uk/en/article/2009/032071/thunderstorms-and-flooding-you-cannot-be-serious
    In text messages, Twitter, or reading over the phone:
    stunell.co.uk/a11lN

    Email this page to a friend


    • Generate different image
  • Help out or donate

    Help out in your local area

      •  
      •  
      •  
      •  
      •  
      •  
      •  
      •  
      •  
      •  
      •  
      •  
    • If you submit your email address, the Liberal Democrats and their elected representatives may use the information you have provided to contact you from time to time about issues we think you may find of interest. Some of the contacts may be automated. You can opt out of some or all contacts at any time by contacting us.


    • Generate different image
  • Tell us what you think

    Send us your views

    If you are a resident of the Hazel Grove constituency and are writing to discuss any issue that Parliament or government is responsible for, you must provide your home address as MPs are generally only permitted to act on behalf of constituents.

    If you are not a constituent, you do not need to provide your address, but the matters we can deal with are more limited and you may wish to contact your local MP in the first instance.

    • If you choose to join our email list, the Liberal Democrats and their elected representatives may use the information you have provided to contact you from time to time about issues we think you may find of interest. Some of the contacts may be automated. You can opt out of some or all contacts at any time by contacting us. You do not need to join our email list to complete this form.


    • Generate different image