Environment Secretary Therese Coffey claims Britain was less prepared for Storm Babet deluge because downpours came from the East and not the West

Environment Secretary Therese Coffey risked mockery today as she appeared to blame the wrong sort of rain for devastating floods following Storm Babet.

During a quizzing by MPs, the Cabinet minister suggested Britain was less prepared for recent downpours because the rain came from the East and not the West.

‘This was rain coming from the other way and we don’t have quite as much experience on that,’ Ms Coffey told the House of Commons’ Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee this afternoon.

At least seven people are now thought to have died amid the carnage brought by Storm Babet.

A total of 13 areas broke their daily rainfall records for October last week, while reports of floods to the Environment Agency reached the highest level since 2015/16.

More than 300 flood warnings were issued and hundreds of people have been left homeless, with about 1,250 properties in England flooded.

Environment Secretary Therese Coffey risked mockery as she appeared to blame the wrong sort of rain for devastating floods following Storm Babet

A total of 13 areas broke their daily rainfall records for October last week, while r eports of floods to the Environment Agency reached the highest level since 2015/16

More than 300 flood warnings were issued and hundreds of people have been left homeless , with about 1,250 properties in England flooded

Ms Coffey, who was previously deputy prime minister, told MPs a ‘rapid review’ would be carried out to assess the handling of Storm Babet’s impact.

She suggested it had been harder to predict where resources were needed due to direction from which the devastating rain arrived.

‘One of the things that happened particularly with Storm Babet is that we are very good with the Met Office and the Environment Agency’s flood forecasting at predicting weather normally because most of our rain tends to come in from the west,’ Ms Coffey told the committee.

‘We’ve got that pretty much down to a fine art. This was rain coming from the other way and we don’t have quite as much experience on that.

‘Therefore our accuracy of predicting where such heavy rain would fall was not to the same degree as if it had been.

‘So the Environment Agency had moved assets from parts of the country more towards Yorkshire and the North East and that way.

‘But I’m conscious that there were still some places that felt they could have done with some more pumps.’

Ms Coffey vowed to conduct a ‘rapid review’ alongside the Environment Agency to understand ‘what could have done better’.

Responding to the Cabinet minister’s comments this afternoon, Liberal Democrat environment spokesperson Tim Farron MP said: ‘This is a new low for an Environment Secretary that cannot help but say or do the wrong thing.

‘Therese Coffey blaming the wind for the Government’s failure to protect homes from flooding would almost be comical if so many had not suffered so deeply at the hands of her incompetence.

‘Coffey needs to get a grip, stop blaming everyone else for her failings and come forward with the plan to ensure that families across the country are not left defenceless against flooding.’

It came after the Environment Secretary yesterday faced the wrath of angry residents as she visited flood-hit areas in Nottinghamshire 

Ms Coffey endured a rough reception from locals in Retford as they quizzed her over the Government’s action on flood prevention

A resident with a suitcase walks through flood water in Retford after Storm Babet battered the UK

It came after Ms Coffey yesterday faced the wrath of angry residents as she visited flood-hit areas in Nottinghamshire.

The Environment Secretary endured a rough reception from locals in Retford as they quizzed her over the Government’s action on flood prevention.

In one tense exchange, filmed by Sky News, Lucy Rose told Ms Coffey her property is ‘not a home anymore, it’s just a shell’.

‘It’s not a home anymore… I have to fork out and I have to do all the hard work,’ she said.

Turning to her neighbours, she added: ‘We have to do all the hard work. It’s all on us, we want it all on you now. You’ve got to do it, you deal with it.’

A neighbour later cut in to point out it’s not the first time Retford has suffered flooding woe, after it was previously hit by a deluge in the summer of 2007.

He told Ms Coffey: ‘It’s happened again and now everybody is down again. I’m sorry to say, you’ll go away again… it’ll be swept under the carpet and yet again we’ll be left.’

During her visit to Retford, Ms Coffey acknowledged how residents were asking ‘why stuff hasn’t happened’ since the last major floods in 2007.

She told Sky News: ‘In that time, between 2015 and 2021 we’ve invested £2.6 billion in flood defences right across the country, that was over 300,000 homes.

‘We’re part way through a programme of spending a further £5.2billion over a six-year time period.’

Ms Coffey added that it may take ‘several months’ for some people to move back into their homes after the flooding.

She said: ‘But let’s see what we can do to try and speed some of that along and that’s why our officials have already been in touch with insurers and similar.’

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