Homes without power after Storm Darragh will be reconnected by Wednesday, a minister has said, as the Government faced calls to review whether current measures adequately support vulnerable residents during extreme weather events.
In the Commons, Cabinet Office minister Abena Oppong-Asare paid tribute to those who lost their lives during the storm which hit many parts of the country over the weekend.
“As of this morning, just under 24,000 customers remain without power and reconnections are continuing at pace. Operators expect to have all remaining customers reconnected by tomorrow,” Ms Oppong-Asare said.
In an urgent question, Plaid Cymru MP Ben Lake pressed the minister to bring forward a “longer-term strategy to strengthen national resilience to climate-related disasters”.
The MP for Ceredigion Preseli said: “I am deeply concerned about the thousands of people still without electricity. This storm has brought into a very sharp relief just how dependent other key utilities are on electricity, from heating and water supply to mobile phone networks.
“The latter concern is compounded in rural areas by the fact that many have lost their copper landlines in the recent digital switchover, and now use a system that is dependent on mains power supply.
“The increasing frequency of extreme weather events such as Storm Darragh due to climate change underscores the urgent need for robust civil protection measures, encompassing both our immediate response but also long-term resilience planning.”
Mr Lake continued: “Would the minister therefore commit to reviewing arrangements in light of this storm, including whether the priority services register is adequate to address the needs of vulnerable residents during widespread power outages and ensure that key utilities are equipped to mitigate the impacts of future extreme weather events?”
Ms Oppong-Asare said: “We are continuing to work with partners to ensure that the disruption that has been caused is addressed as soon as possible, and that support is provided to those affected.”
Labour MP Toby Perkins (Chesterfield) called on the Government to “improve the reliability” of weather warnings, adding: “One of the things that flood victims often say is that they have received false warnings on so many occasions that when the warnings come, they often don’t have faith in them.”
Ms Oppong-Asare said the weather warnings in relation to Storm Darragh reached those who would be affected “really effectively”.
She added: “The Met Office warnings, they are based on judgments of highly trained staff who have carefully collaborated to provide instructive advice to people, businesses, transport operators and emergency responders.”
Ann Davies, the Plaid Cymru MP for Caerfyrddin, raised fears the national phone line to report power cuts and damage to electricity equipment “is not working”, adding: “It’s just overwhelmed with the number of calls that are being received.”
Ms Oppong-Asare said: “I’m disappointed to hear that there are issues with the networks, in terms of the constituents reaching those networks.
“We are trying our best to work with those networks to see how we can particularly consider the wider lessons in the future.”
