The water is rising again.

Here we go again. Heavy rain is forecast for the UK tonight, rivers are full, the catchment is saturated and some parts of the country had a full months worth of rain in the first twelve days of January. If things continue like this we will certainly have another round of flood misery and despite the best efforts of  Environment Agency staff on the ground, we are woefully unprepared. The insurance industry will soon just wash their hands of the whole shooting match and move on to some better investment. Nothing short of a full scale national flood policy that covers everything from the location of new development, the re-evaluation of some existing flood plain settlement and a flood defence system that includes both soft and hard engineering will suffice. If just some of the wealth and endeavour that is being used to build investment properties for the international super-rich in London was diverted to flood defence and flood risk management we might be able to face the future with some  confidence. As it is we must just seek consolation in contemplating all that effluent contaminated water seeping over the door sills of all those Lamborghini's in the underground car park of another luxury block.