Minister gives storm resilience assurances

Security Minister Dan Jarvis has said he wants to make sure government is "doing all we can to make Cornwall as resilient as possible" after Storm Goretti.

The Met Office said Goretti was one of the most impactful storms to hit the county in the last 30 to 35 years, and it left extensive damage, power and broadband outage in its wake.

On Tuesday, Cornwall Council leader Leigh Frost said the storm had "exposed a national emergency response framework that has not kept pace with risk".

Jarvis said he had listened to "the serious concerns about the resilience of utilities" expressed by Helston residents and would work with partner agencies to improve it.

Jarvis said: "It's clear to me that the Lizard bore the brunt of the storm, and people have serious concerns about the resilience of utilities, particularly telecoms infrastructure that provides a lifeline in rural communities.

"I've taken these points back to Whitehall and will work with partners across government and industry to make sure we're doing all we can to make Cornwall as resilient as possible."

The Local Democracy Reporting Service said at Tuesday's council meeting, Frost spoke about problems with the Bellwin system of funding, which reimburses local authorities for uninsurable costs caused by disasters like storms.

"The Bellwin scheme continues to favour smaller councils dealing with localised incidents," he said.

"For large unitary authorities facing widespread infrastructure failure, it is not fit for purpose.

"It is a blunt instrument increasingly misaligned with need.

"That is not a criticism of the rules being applied but merely a recognition that the rules themselves are out of date."

He said the council would hold the government "to its word that this event will lead to change, not just reflection".

"That must include updating the government's emergency response policy, reforming Bellwin and recognising that resilience funding must reflect the realities of climate risk here and now, not based on outdated models," he added.

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