Winter has announced its arrival. Unexpectedly heavy snowfall last Sunday resulted in many people getting stuck on our local roads. Having had to do a return drive to Cardiff University, I found myself stranded outside of Tunbridge Wells. The final leg of my journey should have taken me 15 minutes. It took over 5 hours. When we find ourselves in such a difficult predicament, we often have to rely on the kindness of strangers to help us. Thankfully, in this constituency we are fortunate to have so many people who are ready to help others. I experienced this myself that evening and was pleased to help others who were stuck. For a number of cold and tired travellers, who had to abandon their cars, the Bear Inn in Burwash opened their doors and offered room at their inn. You can only imagine the relief which these people felt when they were offered a warm place to see out the night, rather like the Christmas story. The pub offered hot meals, drinks and a place to sleep. The Bear Inn quite rightly made the BBC news for its kindness to these stranded strangers.
This snow storm also caused disruption to both power and water supplies near Battle. Regrettably, unlike those arriving at the Bear Inn in Burwash, residents did not have such a happy ending. In almost a repeat of the circumstances of Storm Eunice last March, but on a smaller scale, power cables were brought down by the adverse weather. This resulted in loss of power to 43 homes which was restored fairly quickly by UK Power Networks. However, it appears that this power loss also impacted a nearby South East Water pumping and treatment station - although neither entity has confirmed this was related to the same incident yet. This resulted in many more homes in the area losing vital water supplies. SE Water’s water storage tanks at this facility drained down completely. This meant that the engineering works to restore the facility were more complicated and time consuming. During this time, residents were completely without water supplies, some for up to 3 days.
Having worked with SE Water, UK Power Networks, OFWAT, OFGEM and the Sussex Resilience Forum after Storm Eunice on the issue of prioritising utilities and providing support to residents in event of crisis events, I am incredibly disappointed that lessons do not appear to have been learnt, again. The expectation was clear - SE Water facilities need to be more resilient and have back up power supplies; parishes, district councils and resilience forums need to be kept fully informed by utility companies and involved in the emergency response; and water (or other basic needs) must be provided at convenient points or delivered to the most vulnerable until supplies are back on line. Whilst I await full reports into this incident, I am immensely frustrated by this repeat of events. I am calling on all those who have responsibility to meet with me to explain the handling of this latest issue and to assure constituents that improvements will be made.
Turning to Westminster news, this week King Charles III made a visit to Parliament to unveil a plaque on the floor of Westminster Hall. This marks the site of the lying-in-state of his mother, our late Queen. The installation continues a tradition which stretches back to Edward VII. It was the first time a reigning monarch has performed the duty. As I watched on, I was struck by how difficult this must have been for our King. He wasn’t just performing his duty, he was returning to the place where he kept watched over his mother’s coffin. It must have been a sad moment but he chatted to many MPs, Peers and staff from across the Palace of Westminster. He asked a group of us if we were contractors. I suppose we are, given you give us a contract which runs from one election to another.
Finally, this week, Rother Voluntary Association held its annual AGM at Ashburnam during which volunteers were presented with awards for the work they do to support their communities. As we approach Christmas, it is the perfect time to reflect and recognise that our communities could not function without the voluntary sector. That so many people give their time and skills freely to support and help others, is what makes our communities so strong and special. As this is my last column before Christmas, I should like to say a special thank you to all those who volunteer. You change lives and make a real difference. May I also wish all readers a very peaceful and Happy Christmas.
