Monday 29 October 2012

Use Starbucks 'Bucks' for flood defences



Richard Benyon MP addressing the LGA Flooding meeting


I was chairing the Local Goverment Association Annual Flooding Conference on Thursday. Floods Minister Richard Benyon (pictured) came along to tell us he hadn't resolved the issue of making insurance affordable for homes in flood risk areas and that the introduction of Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems for new build houses would be delayed supposedly due to lobbying from the building industry over costs.

He went on to bemoan the fact that the private sector were not pulling their weight in providing funds for partnership funding for flood defence projects. I suggested that in lieu of their zero tax bill that Starbucks be approached to significantly contribute. This went down pretty well with the audience which included plenty of Tory Cllrs. He promised to take this idea to Cabinet but to be fair I think he thought I was joking. I wasn't.


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