Anne Squires was typical of many of the victims of the floods in reflecting on both their gratitude for the generosity of Chesterfield people and their fear about a repeat occurrence.

As Founder of the Flood Victims Appeal I have been asked to place on record our thanks to both the Derbyshire Times for their help in publicising our work and to the dozens of local people that were able to contribute both financially and through the donation of household items.

I would also like to mention the contribution of two local groups without whom none of the progress made would have been possible.

Chesterfield and District Rotary Club and Soroptimist International of Chesterfield contributed massively both financially and through providing man (and woman) power to raise funds and assist flood victims at their lowest ebb.

Paul Holmes' claim that no new money would be available for flood defences is misleading. In fact £650 million will be spent in the current year on flood risk management, increasing to £800 million in 2010/11. £34½ million was set aside for the priorities identified in the report commissioned immediately after the floods.

The Government also gave local authorities £119 million to help those in greatest need, with every Chesterfield flood victim being eligible to £650 from this fund.

The Government set up the Pitt Report to learn the lessons from the floods, this has recently reported and 90 different recommendations have been made. It has also confirmed that these floods were the most expensive to happen anywhere in the world in 2007 and were 'exceptional' .

The fact is that no amount of flood defences are likely to prevent us from suffering flooding when weather conditions are this extreme and it would be glib to pretend otherwise.

Flooding is also a known effect of global warming and this should act as an added impetus for all of us to keep climate change at the top of the political agenda.
However having met dozens of victims of the 2007 floods over the last year I can readily understand how no amount of government investment in preventing this kind of disaster befalling them will ever be too much, and that many will forever live in the fear that a repeat could occur. I am glad that the Environment Agency has already given money to Chesterfield Borough Council to clear the town's main watercourses.

Cllr Toby Perkins
Founder, Chesterfield Flood Victims Appeal
Prospective Parliamentary Candidate,
Chesterfield Labour Party.