Lib Dem Sandy Tells County Council “The game is up unless you up your game on drain maintenance.”

Lib Dem County Councillor Sandy Walkington, St Albans City and District, opposition spokesperson on the Environment at County Hall, has challenged the county council and other authorities to 'up their game' as further heavy rain threatens continuing misery and disruption to Hertfordshire residents.

"Yes, the amount of rainfall is virtually unprecedented," Sandy said. "But we all know that gullies have not been maintained and road-side ditches in countryside stretches have not been dredged.

"Before these local floods happened, I had been challenging officers on whether they need to adjust their thinking in the light of the flooding elsewhere in the country. It is more likely that climate change is increasing the frequency of extreme weather events. Frankly they were amazingly complacent, on the basis that 'this sort of thing does not happen in Hertfordshire'.

"Well it has, and we urgently need to plan for increased long-term resilience against flooding - our residents deserve nothing less."

"Of course this is not a reflection on the hardworking County